Through the Years
by JeffAndShannon
Summary: Shannon doesn't know how to let Jeff know how he feels or if it will change their friendship. But does Jeff have his own ideas? (ShannonJeff slash) Disclaimer: I know no one and I own nothing.
1. In the beginning

Shannon fidgeted silently in his seat. He and his best friend Jeff had gone to see a movie as a sort of last night together before Jeff and his brother Matt left for their first real match in the WWF and before Shannon started his last year of high school. Jeff and Matt had made appearances in WWF events before, but now they had a contract and Shannon knew that meant he'd be seeing Jeff less often. It also meant that the future of his favorite pastime, the Omega powers, was uncertain. All of this weighed on Shannon's mind and he wasn't paying attention to the screen.  
  
Jeff seemed oblivious to Shannon's discomfort as he laughed along with the rest of the audience. This annoyed the younger man a great deal. He'd been feeling something more than friendship for Jeff, but didn't know if he should tell him, especially now that they were not going to be together very much from now on. He didn't even know if Jeff would find the idea of being with another guy repulsive. Jeff had always known when something was wrong with Shannon and had been the one the young blond went to with his problems in the past. It troubled Shannon that Jeff hadn't noticed something was off before now.  
  
Sighing, Shannon tried looking back up to the screen and paying attention. It didn't matter anyway as the credits began rolling not five minutes later. Shannon sighed again and followed Jeff out of the theater to Jeff's car.  
  
"That was great, wasn't it?" Jeff said when they stepped outside. The night air was comfortable, but not too hot for time of year.  
  
"Yeah," Shannon answered dejectedly kicking a pebble at his feet.  
  
"Hey, you want to hang out at my house tonight?"  
  
Shannon looked up and quirked an eyebrow. He'd thought Jeff would want to be home early tonight to get ready to leave tomorrow.  
  
"Don't you have to be ready early?"  
  
"Not that early," Jeff laughed. "And anyway, I packed last night."  
  
"Okay then," Shannon smiled.  
  
Jeff drove them to his house and they headed right to the trampoline in the backyard when they got there. This was their favorite place to just lay around and talk. Hoisting themselves up, they lay side by side looking up at the stars and making small talk. Shannon tried to point out some constellations and Jeff kept "seeing" porn pictures in the stars instead.  
  
"You going to miss me?" Jeff suddenly asked. He sounded a bit nervous and that surprised Shannon. Jeff had never been anything but relaxed with him before.  
  
"Of course," Shannon replied, turning to look at Jeff. "You have to ask?"  
  
"I don't know," the other shrugged. "You've been distant lately."  
  
So he HAD noticed. Shannon wasn't sure what to do now. Should he tell Jeff how he felt, or should he sidestep the issue? On the one hand, Jeff was leaving tomorrow for an undetermined period of time. On the other, he would be risking the most important friendship he'd ever had.  
  
"Just worried about losing our friendship," he finally admitted. Well, it was part of the truth. "You getting famous might make you forget about me."  
  
"Shan, I ain't never going to forget about you," Jeff chuckled.  
  
They both laughed at that but fell silent again. It was one of those uncomfortable silences that stretches out for a long time and hangs in the air.  
  
"Hey, we should celebrate our last night together for a while," Jeff finally said, sitting up.  
  
"Celebrate how?" Shannon asked, not moving. He noticed Jeff's eyes travel briefly down his frame and felt himself blushing a bit in confusion. Then Jeff returned his gaze to Shannon's face and smiled again. He leaned over the side of the trampoline and pulled up a bottle.  
  
"Jeff?" Shannon asked uncertainly.  
  
"It's only a bottle of Jack, Shan," Jeff smiled again reassuringly. "I know you don't drink. Neither do I, really. But I just think tonight it feels right have one."  
  
Shannon was still feeling uneasy with the idea, but he didn't want to disappoint his best friend on their final summer night together so he slowly sat up and nodded, "Okay."  
  
"Great," Jeff said as he broke the seal on the bottle.  
  
"Where'd you get it?"  
  
"Matt picked a case up for a party he was going to," Jeff explained. "I asked him if I could have one. He wasn't sure at first, but I told him we have a right to celebrate, too. So he made me promise to save it until we were home for the night."  
  
"Nice of Matt," Shannon said as he accepted the bottle Jeff handed to him. "No glasses?"  
  
"No," Jeff laughed. "Can't you just swig it?"  
  
Shannon shrugged and took a swig, coughing as the liquid burned its way down his throat. He shakily handed the bottle back to Jeff, who was thumping him on the back and laughing.  
  
"You okay?"  
  
"Yeah," Shannon coughed again.  
  
They took some more swigs as they talked about Shannon's senior year and Jeff's big wrestling break. Finally, Shannon shook his head when Jeff handed him the bottle. He was feeling buzzed enough without adding any more to his queasy stomach. Jeff shrug and took a few more long swigs before capping the bottle and returning it to its place under the trampoline, almost falling over the side as he tried to get back up. Laughing, Shannon put an arm around Jeff's waist and pulled him back up. Jeff fell back onto the bouncing mat and the impact tossed Shannon in the air and then onto his back. Jeff laughed and covered him, looking deeply into his eyes. Shannon suddenly felt his stomach do a cartwheel and it had nothing to do with the alcohol.  
  
"Jeff?"  
  
"Sh-hh," the Hardy responded, placing a finger against Shannon's lips, which he then trailed down his chin and throat. Shannon swallowed but remained absolutely still, losing himself in Jeff's emerald gaze. He knew the whiskey was responsible for this, but dammit, he didn't want it to end.  
  
Jeff raked his eyes over Shannon's body again, this time quite blatantly. There was no mistaking the lust in his eyes. Shannon trembled slightly within his friend's hold, waiting for Jeff to decide what to do next.  
  
"You cold?" Jeff asked, bringing his magnetic eyes back to Shannon's. Shannon shook his head. "You afraid of me?" Jeff asked. Shannon shook his head again. "You want this?" Jeff drawled huskily, pushing his hard manhood against Shannon's and watching him carefully. Shannon slowly nodded his head and Jeff smirked. "Good. Because I want you." Having said that, Jeff locked his lips onto Shannon's and kissed him long and deeply. It was a firm kiss, but not brutal and not rushed. Jeff was making it clear he intended to take his time tonight.  
  
"Won't your daddy hear?" Shannon panted when Jeff finally let him up for some air.  
  
"Daddy's out with his friends. They're going fishing at five so he decided to stay at Dave's house tonight, since he's so close to the lake."  
  
Convenient, Shannon thought. Then it occurred to him that Jeff might have set this up on purpose. But as he turned that over in head Jeff swooped in for another hot kiss and erased all thought from Shannon's mind. Jeff's hands deftly moved over every inch of Shannon's body, eliciting moans from the small blond that he himself had never heard before. The bigger man began worshipping him with his mouth and all Shannon could do was lay back and whimper.  
  
"Let me help you with these," Jeff purred, pulling off Shannon's pants. For his part, Shannon wasn't even aware Jeff had unzipped him. Imagine how surprised he was to realize he was already shirtless. The slight breeze on his thighs told him his pants and boxers were now a fond memory and Jeff was sucking on his right nipple while tweaking the left with his fingers. After a few minutes, Jeff switched nipples and Shannon sighed in contentment.  
  
Jeff stopped and Shannon looked down just in time to see him smirk before darting his tongue into the younger man's belly button. A shot of electricity went through the small blond and he shrieked in pleasure.  
  
"Say my name," Jeff ordered quietly, licking a straight line from Shannon's navel to his shaft.  
  
"Jeff," Shannon grunted, running his fingers through Jeff's tinted blue locks.  
  
"Again," Jeff growled looking up and locking eyes with him. "Say it like you want me."  
  
"I do want you, Jeff," Shannon said with more feeling than he ever thought he could infuse into one sentence.  
  
Jeff smiled at him in victory and then closed his mouth over his shaft.  
  
"Oh my GOD," Shannon exclaimed as he lost himself in Jeff's obvious talents. The Hardy worked Shannon's cock slowly and brought him to the brink of cumming before pulling back a bit and bringing him back down. He repeated the process five more times, each time bringing Shannon closer to explosion, but pulling back.  
  
"Jeff, please!" Shannon finally begged, pushing himself further into his lover's mouth. Jeff chuckled deep in his throat and the vibrations shook Shannon to the core. "Please Jeff," he begged again, all of his strength leaving him. He was at Jeff's mercy and they both knew it.  
  
Jeff looked up at him for a moment with a smirk and all Shannon could do was watch helplessly.  
  
"You want to cum for me, baby," Jeff said in a low dangerous tone Shannon had never heard before. Shannon nodded fervently, loving the endearment. "You want to come in my mouth?" Shannon nodded again. "Well, I definitely want to taste you," Jeff went on thoughtfully then he smiled wolfishly at his helpless lover. "Okay, hold on tight."  
  
He suddenly swooped back down and deep throated Shannon, who nearly bucked up into the air. Jeff sucked harder than before and suddenly the pressure was too much. Shannon screamed as he came with such a force he nearly blacked out. Jeff sucked him dry and licked off all remnants. He then gently redressed Shannon, who was as limp as a rag doll at that point.  
  
"But you . . ." Shannon protested weakly.  
  
"Sh-hh," Jeff said and turned him on his side, spooning him from behind. 


	2. Pining away

A few years later . . .  
  
Shannon took another swig from his Jack Daniels bottle and stared up at the night sky from his hotel balcony. If he closed his eyes, he could revisit that time a few years back and feel Jeff's mouth exploring his chest. He'd done it a lot since that night. He and Jeff hadn't hooked back up since and Shannon tried to keep the hurt inside. He didn't understand but he didn't want to lose Jeff completely. He let his mind wander back.  
  
They'd awakened early, just after dawn. The sunlight hadn't let them sleep. Jeff's arms had still been around Shannon's waist. When Shannon stirred, Jeff had jumped back as if he'd been burnt. Shannon felt a deep pain stab his heart but didn't say anything, figuring Jeff had been ashamed of what they'd done when they were drunk. He rubbed his eyes pretending he hadn't noticed that Jeff was staring nervously at him. If the older man wanted to ignore what happened, Shannon's only choice was to go along with it if he wanted to have Jeff in his life at all.  
  
"So, I guess I'll let you get ready to go then," Shannon said offering Jeff what he hoped was a friendly smile.  
  
"Uh, yeah," Jeff said smiling back. "I'll call you next week sometime and let you know how it's going."  
  
"Sounds good," said the smaller blond. He patted Jeff's arm on his way out of the yard.  
  
They'd never discussed what had happened that night again. In the few years since, Jeff had immersed himself in his extreme character and his multitude of fans. The girls loved him. He wasn't a womanizer but he did date a bit more. He'd recently settled down with a girlfriend, Beth. Shannon watched them when they didn't know he was looking. He couldn't get his best friend out of his mind, or his heart. For his own part, Shannon had settled into a nice relationship with Crystal, a girl he'd known for years.  
  
It was just that every so often, well often, Shannon couldn't get that night out of mind. So he handled it as he always did: he bought a bottle of Jack and wallowed in his memories. He took another long swig, closed his eyes and felt the slow, hard stirrings caused by his memories, as a tear slid down his cheek.  
  
*************************************  
  
The next evening, Shannon wrapped the tape around his wrist tightly. He'd twisted his left wrist in a house show the week before and wanted to make sure it was protected as best as possible before he went on tonight. The door opened and he looked up, startled.  
  
"Just me," Shane smiled.  
  
"Hey," Shannon grinned back.  
  
"You ready for our big boy band debut?"  
  
"As ready as I'll ever be," Shannon laughed. "You?"  
  
"Yeah," Shane replied dropping onto a bench to tie his boots. "I can't wait! I'm so glad they came up with a gimmick for us. I was so scared they were going to let us go."  
  
"Me, too."  
  
The door banged open and Evan strutted inside like he owned the place. Nothing new. Shane and Shannon exchanged a smile before greeting him.  
  
"How goes it, my man?" Shane cried.  
  
"Going great," Evan grinned. "How you doing, Shan?" He clapped Shannon's shoulder causing the smaller wrestler to jump.  
  
"Doing, fine, Ev," Shannon smiled.  
  
Evan had been hanging around Shannon more lately and it was a bit disconcerting. He was a great guy and really good looking, but Shannon wasn't attracted. He liked Evan fine but he wasn't sure what was going on here. He tried to stay with Shane as much as possible these days, but this new gimmick would have him spending more time with Evan now. A job's a job, though, and he was glad to be working for WCW.  
  
"You guys need another rehearsal?" Shane asked.  
  
"Nah," Shannon waved him off. "I got the songs down."  
  
"Yeah," Evan agreed. "Besides, as soon as Shannon hits the scene, the girls will be screaming too loud to hear us anyway."  
  
"Speak for yourself, man," Shane pretended to grouse. "I ain't no slouch myself."  
  
"Neither am I," Evan grinned.  
  
"That's debatable," Shane laughed.  
  
Shannon laughed along with them, but Evan's comment made him uneasy again. He finished taping his other wrist and bent down to lace up his boots.  
  
"Hey, I'll be right back," Shane said and he darted out the door, leaving Shannon and Evan alone.  
  
Shannon's stomach lurched but he tried to keep his actions calm.  
  
"So, Shan," Evan said in a low voice. "What you up to lately?"  
  
"Up to nothing, Ev," the blond replied pulling tightly on his laces and refraining from looking up.  
  
"Really? Because I haven't seen you around much lately. I thought you must be busy."  
  
"Just the usual stuff," Shannon said, beginning to sweat a little. "Traveling wears me out and I'm trying to spend more time with Crystal when I can."  
  
"Oh," Evan said, disappointment evident in his voice. "So, you're avoiding me then?"  
  
"Why would I avoid you?" Shannon shifted to the other boot now, taking his time.  
  
"I don't know," Evan said plopping down on the bench next to Shannon. "I just got the feeling."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I don't know."  
  
"No, I meant why are you trying to spend time with me?" Shannon asked. He wasn't sure he wanted to have this conversation, but there seemed to be no way around it.  
  
"I just wanted to," Evan said, his face reddening a bit.  
  
"Look, I'm not sure if I have this right, so please don't take this wrongly," Shannon began, licking his lips. "I got a girlfriend."  
  
"I know," Evan said, smiling faintly. "I do, too. I just can't stop thinking about you."  
  
Something in Evan's desperate tone pulled at Shannon's heart. He knew exactly what the other man was feeling. He lived it for the last few years while the object of his own deep desires pretended the most earth shattering night of his life never happened. Try as he might, he just couldn't hold onto the discomfort he'd felt earlier.  
  
"Really?" he asked nonchalantly. "Me?"  
  
"Yeah," Evan nodded, looking down. "Look, I know you have a girl and nothing serious could ever come from it, but do you think you could, you know, go out with me. Just once?"  
  
Shannon sighed and tilted his head studying his new tag team partner. Evan still hadn't looked up. It seemed he'd already resigned himself to a rejection.  
  
"Sure," Shannon finally said and Evan's eyes snapped up to his in surprise. Shannon laughed as he took in Evan's hopeful expression. "I said yes," he assured him.  
  
"Really?" Evan finally smiled.  
  
Shannon smiled. "I can't promise anything but a date, though. Like we both said, we've got girls. But as long as we know what's what, what's the harm?"  
  
"That's what I was thinking," Evan grinned. "Thanks, Shan. How about tomorrow night?"  
  
"Okay," Shannon chuckled.  
  
"Hey, Ev, Bish wants to see you," Shane said, poking his head back in the doorway.  
  
"Okay," Evan said, jumping up. "See you two in a few."  
  
"What's with him?" Shane asked with a laugh, sitting down in the spot Evan just vacated.  
  
"Nothing."  
  
He knew that wouldn't work but he tried anyway. Shane could be a pain in the ass when he wanted to and Shannon had a feeling this was one of those time.  
  
"Sha-a-annon?" Shane teased. "What's up?"  
  
"Nothing," Shannon felt his cheeks grow hot. "He asked me out on a date and I said okay."  
  
Shane went quiet and watched Shannon through shuttered eyes.  
  
"What?" Shannon asked.  
  
"You sure you want to go down that road?" Shane asked carefully.  
  
Shane was the only person Shannon told about that night with Jeff, and he hadn't told him everything. As far as Shane knew, Jeff and Shannon made out and cuddled all night. But that was enough. The other man, who looked at Shannon as a younger brother, was very protective of his feelings. He remained friends with the Hardy brothers, but as far as Shane was concerned, Jeff was just Matt's brother. Nothing more. He couldn't understand how Jeff could play with Shannon but ignore his feelings so easily the next day. And Shane could see Shannon's love shining in his eyes whenever Jeff was near, but the younger Hardy refused to acknowledge it. Shane had told Shannon, on numerous occasions, what he thought of Jeff, so his reaction to Shannon's dating another guy wasn't surprising.  
  
"It's just one date," Shannon sighed, rolling his eyes. "He was telling me how he couldn't stop thinking about me and I guess I felt like I could help him avoid the pain."  
  
"Shannon, just be careful, okay?" Shane said, putting an arm around Shannon's shoulder. "I heard some things about Ev that don't sit right with me."  
  
"Like what?" Shannon asked.  
  
"He dates a lot of guys and the relationships end badly."  
  
"Badly how?" Shannon was beginning to worry about what he'd got himself into.  
  
"He gets obsessive, I hear," Shane said.  
  
"It's only one date."  
  
"Okay," Shane said, backing off. "Just be careful."  
  
"Okay," Shannon said distractedly, thinking about how he could keep things distant but friendly with Evan. Tomorrow would come too soon, he thought.  
  
*********************************  
  
AUTHOR'S NOTE: First, I'm very excited about my reviews! Thank you all for welcoming my first piece. I have so many ideas for this story I just hope I don't blow it!  
  
Grasshopper: This is definitely not the end yet! Poor Shannon has some more angst to go through first. (I just LOVE Shannon!)  
  
Hearts Desire: I went to the site you recommended, but I couldn't get it. Maybe it's just temporarily down. I'll keep checking. Thanks!  
  
Cat Lea Takersdarkone: THANKS! I was really nervous about the romance scene. I hope it was hot enough!  
  
I hope you all stay with me for more! 


	3. What's going on?

The next night Shannon and Evan headed out together as planned. The smaller man was still a little nervous about what his date was planning, but he figured he'd have to deal with the situation as it unfolded. Evan decided they would catch a late dinner at a local place near the hotel that also had a great arcade. Shannon didn't mind that plan as he could keep things very casual in such an environment. When he'd informed Shane of their plans the older man nodded seriously but reminded his "little brother" to be very careful about what he let happened.  
  
Evan and Shannon got a small table in the back of the dimly lit room next to the bar. They ordered a pitcher of beer and some burgers from the waitress, who giggled and flirted with her attractive customers. Apparently it was a slow night and she was used to a less attractive clientele. The guys laughed about it after she'd left their table.  
  
"The new gimmick is going well, isn't it?" Evan asked.  
  
"Yeah," Shannon agreed. "It's great to have TV time, too."  
  
"I'm just glad they didn't dump us like we all thought they would. They weren't even giving us a chance!"  
  
"I know," Shannon said. "But you know what it's like. If they can't be sure you can deliver, they drop you."  
  
"Well, I wasn't looking forward to going back to the indies," Evan wrinkled his nose in disgust.  
  
"I don't know," Shannon laughed, taking a sip of his beer. "I didn't mind them that much. But I sure am glad to have a regular job."  
  
"Me too," Evan smiled. He didn't drop his eyes from Shannon's and that made the blond a little apprehensive. "Are you okay?" Evan asked when Shannon started to squirm.  
  
"I'm fine."  
  
"Do I make you nervous?"  
  
Shannon sighed and looked into his beer glass for inspiration on how to handle this. He looked up again and saw that Evan still hadn't dropped his gaze.  
  
"It's just that I ain't been on a date with a guy before," Shannon began honestly. He'd never been good with subterfuge and decided he wouldn't start trying now. "I don't know what you expect from me and I'm scared of offending you if I don't, well if I don't deliver on something you're expecting."  
  
Evan put his beer glass down and touched the back of Shannon's hand briefly. "I don't expect anything from you, Shannon," he said. "I just want to hang out with you. No pressure."  
  
"I know that's what we said . . ."  
  
"That's what I meant," Evan interrupted him. "This is about the rumors, isn't it? Someone found out about me asking you out and warned you against me, didn't they?"  
  
Shannon squirmed in his seat again. He wouldn't give Shane away because Shane was like a brother to him. But he did want to hear Evan's side of things. He shrugged and let the other man draw his own conclusions.  
  
"First of all," Evan started, "I only dated Steiner casually."  
  
Shannon's eyes just about popped out of his head. "SCOTT Steiner?"  
  
"His brother, Rick," Evan smiled ruefully. "And secondly, he was the one getting too attached. It was like casual one day, stifling the next. It gave me a whole new respect for the women I've dated, though I never treated them as possessively as he did to me."  
  
"So why do some of the guys in the back say that about you?" Shannon asked softly.  
  
"Because that's the story he told them," Evan grimaced. "And because I refused to talk about it with anyone who asked, which would thereby refute his story."  
  
Shannon sat back dumbfounded. "I am so sorry that happened to you."  
  
"Yeah," Evan smiled again. "So am I. And it seems to be following me, huh?"  
  
Shannon shook his head and held up his beer glass. "Look, Ev, I really am sorry about that. I'm sure you meant it when you said you wanted to keep it casual. Let's just hang like the couple of friends we are."  
  
Evan clicked glasses with him and they drank. A few minutes later, their food arrived and they ate and talked. After that, they spent the remainder of the night in the arcade. Shannon couldn't believe he was having such a great time. He was glad they got past the awkwardness.  
  
*******************************  
  
Shannon whistled happily when he got back to his hotel room. He was sharing with Shane tonight and he knew the other man would be waiting up to ask him about the date. When he opened the door, he found he wasn't disappointed.  
  
"Hey, Shan!" Shane grinned from his bed. "You survived?"  
  
"It wasn't that bad," Shannon laughed. "It was actually a lot of fun."  
  
"Nothing happened, right?" Shane now wore the look of the overprotective brother.  
  
"No," Shannon laughed again. "He was fine, just like he said he would be. Didn't even try to kiss me good night. We agreed to just hang out together. No pressure, no weirdness."  
  
"Hmph," Shane said, apparently not convinced.  
  
"He told me about his relationship with Steiner."  
  
"He dated the genetic freak?"  
  
"Not that Steiner," Shannon grinned, dropping onto his own bed, facing Shane. "He told me that Steiner spread the rumors when Evan wouldn't let the relationship get serious."  
  
"Hmph," Shane said again.  
  
"Who told you anyway?" Shannon asked narrowing his eyes.  
  
"Well," Shane grunted. "Steiner, actually."  
  
"Ah ha," the blond man said confidently.  
  
"That doesn't mean you should steamroll ahead, little man," Shane said warningly.  
  
"I didn't say I would," Shannon growled. "And I ain't little!" He grabbed his fly and tugged. "You want to see?"  
  
"No!" Shane laughed. "Keep those panties on."  
  
Shannon threw his pillow at Shane then tackled him on his bed.  
  
*******************************  
  
Jeff Hardy groaned as he fell onto his bed. Another hard night in another strange place. He wondered sometimes if it was all worth it. His brother Matt groaned from his bed and Jeff smiled, glad to know that at least he wasn't alone.  
  
"You feel as bad as I do then?" he asked his brother with a smirk.  
  
"Mmmhmmm," Matt responded with his face buried into his pillow.  
  
"You still think this was a good career choice?"  
  
"The best," Matt grinned looking up momentarily.  
  
"How'd I know you would say that?"  
  
Matt shrugged and pulled out his cell. "I'm calling Shane to see how he's doing." He started punching the keys, missing Jeff's pained expression.  
  
Jeff knew calling Shane meant calling Shannon. He missed his best friend sorely, but it hurt every time he talked to him. Every word, every sound Shannon uttered sent Jeff's body into a series of tingles. It was almost painful. Yet, he hadn't acted on those inclinations since that night. And he told himself he wouldn't do that to the younger man again. Shannon was obviously straight, Jeff told himself. He'd been dating Crystal for years and everyone knew they were planning to marry someday. That's why Jeff finally decided to settle into a relationship with Beth. If he couldn't have Shannon, he wanted to make sure the young man was happy and knowing Jeff was pining for him wouldn't make him happy.  
  
"Ask him how the kid's doing," Jeff instructed Matt in as upbeat a tone as he could muster.  
  
"Sugar?" Matt said into the phone. "Why do you sound like you just got out of the ring?"  
  
There was silence on Matt's end and Jeff turned over to watch him.  
  
"Well maybe you should stop calling him little," Matt laughed and Jeff chuckled, surmising what had happened. "Jeff wants to know how he's doing anyway."  
  
More silence.  
  
"Cause he's his best friend, that's why," Matt frowned. "Shane, don't start."  
  
Jeff frowned, too. He didn't know what had happened to suddenly make Shane dislike him, but it was evident every time they were in the same room together. He and Matt would find Shane and Shannon when they were home and the scenario never changed. Shane would look at Shannon warningly, glare at Jeff hotly for a second and walk away with Matt following behind. Matt had tried to get his friend to talk to him about the problem, but Shane would only get moody and tell Matt to leave it alone. And Jeff didn't ask Shannon about it for fear of stirring up trouble between the smaller blond and Shane. Maybe he should sit down alone with Shane and talk to him. Maybe.  
  
His own cell rang and broke him out of his thoughts.  
  
"Hello?" he asked when he'd clicked it on.  
  
"Hey," Shannon's voice drifted into his ear and he had to close his eyes for a second to keep from moaning.  
  
"Hey, Shan," he said. "I was just trying to find out how you are but was getting nowhere."  
  
"So I figured," the smaller man said. "I'm fine. How are you?"  
  
"Sore as hell," Jeff grumbled.  
  
"That's what happens when you jump off 50 foot ladders every week," Shannon laughed.  
  
"Yeah," Jeff laughed back. "I guess. Shannon?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"What did I do to piss Shane off?"  
  
There was an uncomfortable silence for a few seconds that felt longer than they actually were. Then Shannon's voice filled his ears again. Nervously. Higher pitched than usual.  
  
"I don't know, Jeff," Shannon squeaked. "He won't tell me what's wrong."  
  
Jeff suspected Shannon was trying to stay out of it, but he didn't want to accuse him of lying.  
  
"Okay," he said to the blond. "I just thought you might know."  
  
"Sorry," Shannon sighed. "Well, I'll let you get some sleep."  
  
"Talk to you soon?"  
  
"Yeah," Shannon replied with a laugh. "Talk to you soon." Then Jeff heard a click and turned off his own phone.  
  
*******************************  
  
Evan smiled when he got back to his own room. Thinking of Shannon gave his body all kinds of stirrings. He was going to have some pretty hot dreams tonight.  
  
"You're back earlier than I thought you'd be," Juvi, his roommate, greeted him with a kiss on the cheek.  
  
"Well, it was only a first date," Evan smirked. "Can't expect a fine piece of ass like Shannon to give it up that quickly, can you?"  
  
"You sure he's that interested?"  
  
"He's getting there," Evan smiled.  
  
"Good," Juvi sighed. "I can't wait till you bring him back to me."  
  
"I have to get him first, dear," Evan laughed, pulling Juvi's shirt off.  
  
"Will it take long?" Juvi sighed again and shuddered sweetly as Evan licked his earlobe.  
  
"Hope not," Evan replied as he continued his ministrations. "But Steiner's been busy warning people away from me. I think I answered Shannon's concerns for now, but it would be easier if he weren't so naïve."  
  
"Yeah, but it wouldn't be as satisfying," Juvi said, pulling Evan onto his bed. "Just think of how fun it will be to corrupt him."  
  
"Yeah," Evan agreed, kissing his lover deeply. "We just need to make sure he stays away from Steiner."  
  
"I'll handle it," Juvi smiled. "Now will you please fuck me, mi amor?"  
  
Evan laughed and moved to comply.  
  
*******************************  
  
Note: Thanks again for the reviews! 


	4. Look out, Shanny!

Shannon and Evan had been hanging out together for almost a month and it was beginning to worry Shane. He still had his doubts about Steiner and Evan's relationship, but he kept these mostly to himself to keep the piece in his new tag team group, 3 Count. So far, Evan hadn't pressured Shannon into anything more than going to the movies or a bar in the areas where they performed. Shane had even gone out with them a few times to get a better handle on things. Evan and Shannon seemed fine, though Shane couldn't shake his bad feeling. Steiner may not even be a credible source, either.  
  
Shannon had told Shane a few days ago about an interesting conversation he'd had with Juvi after the show one night. Juvi had a series of bruises on his back and torso that Shannon had seen accidentally when he'd walked into the locker room to get something he'd forgotten. Juvi had apparently been trying to hide the bruises and had waited until the locker room was empty before he changed.  
  
When Shannon questioned him, concerned about his welfare, Juvi tearfully told him about his new and recently ended relationship with Rick Steiner and how he'd beaten the smaller man when Juvi tried to break things off. Shannon held him and let him cry for a while helped him change and took him back to the hotel with himself and Shane. When they'd dropped Juvi at his door and found their own room, Shannon told Shane what had happened.  
  
But something about the whole situation gnawed at him. It was pretty convenient that Juvi's problem surfaced after Shane told Shannon what he'd heard. And when Evan didn't know Shane was watching him, Shane couldn't miss the calculating smile he directed to an oblivious Shannon. Nope, something wasn't right here at all. And Shane wasn't about to take his eyes off Shannon for a minute until he found out what the hell it was.  
  
********************************  
  
Evan watched Shannon practice with barely concealed lust. He and Juvi knew their plan to keep the blond away from Steiner had worked perfectly. Too bad a similar plan wouldn't work on Shane Helms. He knew Shane was apprehensive about his budding relationship with Shannon and had made every effort to appease him, but nothing worked. And Juvi was getting impatient. He wanted Shannon in their bed with them now. They'd already planned the scenario and acquired the drug. Shannon wouldn't give it up any other way, Evan realized.  
  
Evan agreed it was taking longer than he'd hoped. It hadn't taken this long with the others, but they were one-nighters. Both he and Juvi wanted Shannon with them for a lot longer than that. It would take some convincing after the first time, but Shannon could be coerced into such a relationship once he'd been taken. This Evan knew from the way Shannon was adjusting to him now, even though the blond had been very reluctant to date him at first.  
  
Although he'd only shared a few kisses with Shannon, he'd gotten a taste of him and he wanted that sweetness for himself. Juvi was going to become addicted, too. He knew his lover well. Shane would have to be distracted tonight for the plan to work.  
  
Evan grinned at his own intelligence. He knew the Hardys were performing in the vicinity tonight. He also knew that Shane and Shannon intended to meet up with them. What they didn't know was that Shannon was going to get a call from a tearful Juvi just before he left and he would be sending Shane off on his own, the older man not suspicious as Shannon would be with Juvi instead of Evan and didn't know about the connection yet.  
  
Yes, tonight they would have the young blond, Evan smiled to himself. And they would have him completely.  
  
********************************  
  
Shannon pulled his shirt over his head whistling lightly. He was looking forward to seeing Jeff tonight. And for the first time in years, he felt he would be seeing him without the usual longing and sadness. He knew he owed a lot of that to his new relationship. Evan hadn't pressured him at all. He'd been very sweet, actually. And Shannon was beginning to look forward to their dates. It was too bad that Shane was taking so long to get used to it, but Shannon knew his "big brother" would adjust eventually. It was nice to have someone watching out for him on the road, anyway.  
  
"You almost ready, Shanny?" Shane asked as he walked back in the room from seeing one of the guys down the hall.  
  
"Yeah, and stop calling me that," Shannon griped back with a smile.  
  
"Aw, but you'll always be my little Shanny," the older man teased, pulling the blond into a headlock and laughing.  
  
Shannon struggled a little, giggling, until Shane let go and stood him back up.  
  
"Sorry about that," he smiled. "You know I can't resist touching you."  
  
"Yeah, right," Shannon grinned. "If that was the case, I'd really be worried."  
  
Shane only shook his head and picked up the keys to their rental car. Just as they were about to leave, the hotel phone rang.  
  
"Leave it," Shane said, not breaking stride.  
  
"But it might be Matt and Jeff," Shannon argued, walking over to the phone and picking it up. "Hello?"  
  
"Sh-shannon?" Juvi's small voice sniffled into the phone. "C-can y-you c- come over tonight?"  
  
"Juvi? What's wrong?" Shannon asked, instantly alarmed.  
  
Juvi let out a low sob and seemed to be fighting for composure before he could go on. Shannon waited patiently, looking at Shane who stood leaning against the door in obvious annoyance. The small blond just shrugged.  
  
"It's Rick," Juvi finally went on. "I s-saw h-him earlier and h-he . . .w- w-we had another fight."  
  
"Another fight with Steiner?" Shannon repeated. "Are you okay, Juvi? He hurt you bad last time."  
  
"N-no."  
  
"You need to see a doctor then," Shannon advised sternly.  
  
"NO!" Juvi screamed. "N-no d-doctors. I j-just w-want to st-stay h-here. Cc- can y-you st-stay w-with m-me t-tonight?"  
  
"I was just on my way out."  
  
"P-p-please? Y-you're the only one that kn-knows."  
  
"All right," Shannon sighed. "I'll be over in a few minutes."  
  
"Oh, th-thank y-you, Sh-shannon," Juvi gushed. "Th-thank y-you s-so m- much."  
  
The line went dead and Shannon turned to a very pissed off Shane.  
  
"What was I supposed to do?" Shannon asked defensively. "You saw the bruises yourself."  
  
"Can't someone else?"  
  
"He says no one else knows," Shannon replied. "He begged me not to tell. I never even told him I told you."  
  
"Where's your boyfriend tonight, anyway?" Shane suddenly asked darkly.  
  
"Evan's not my boyfriend," Shannon returned just as warningly. "And he's home visiting his girlfriend."  
  
Shane nodded once, but appeared no less worried.  
  
"Well, I guess I'll make your excuses to Matt and Jeff," he finally said. "At least I don't have to watch you around him tonight."  
  
"Shane, try not to be nasty to him tonight," Shannon pleaded. "He asked me why you're mad at him and I'm not good with lying. I'd rather not have that particular conversation with him either."  
  
Shane stared rigidly back at him.  
  
"Please?" Shannon added softly.  
  
"Okay," Shane finally muttered with a sigh. "But I can't promise to be nice to him."  
  
"As long as you're not too mean, that's all I'm asking," Shannon smiled as they left the room.  
  
********************************  
  
Shane reached the bar just as Jeff turned around. He regarded the younger Hardy coolly but nodded in greeting.  
  
"Hi," Jeff said and Matt turned on his own stool.  
  
"Hey, Sugar," he greeted Shane with his usual smirk. "Where's the kid?"  
  
"He got a last minute call from a friend in need," Shane said taking the empty stool next to Matt, and as far from Jeff as possible. "Says to tell you he's really sorry and he'll call Jeff tomorrow."  
  
"Oh," Jeff said looking disappointed. That look did nothing to soften Shane's attitude towards him. He merely regarded the Hardy remotely for a minute before turning back to his own best friend.  
  
"Nasty hit you took from Adam last night," he grinned after ordering a beer.  
  
"You saw it?" Matt asked.  
  
"Shanny and I never miss it when we can watch."  
  
"Jeff took the bigger bump from Jay," Matt pointed out. "They'd practiced it a thousand times, too. Why'd you miss that spot anyway?" He asked over his shoulder.  
  
Jeff shrugged.  
  
"Probably something shiny in the audience?" Shane taunted softly.  
  
Jeff gave him a bewildered look and turned back to his beer.  
  
"Please, Shaney," Matt whispered so only he could hear.  
  
"All right," Shane whispered back. "Shan made me promise, too."  
  
Matt grinned and Shane scanned the room for anyone interesting while he waited for his own beer. His eyes widened when they fell on the notorious Steiner brothers. That couldn't be right, he thought. Could Rick have gotten into an emotional confrontation with Juvi then gone out immediately to pick up babes with his brother? A cold fear ran down his back as he pushed away from the bar.  
  
"Be back in a sec," he called back to Matt.  
  
********************************  
  
"Are you feeling any better?" Shannon asked as he patted Juvi on the shoulder.  
  
"A little," Juvi sniffled before getting up to pour himself some soda. "You want some?"  
  
"Maybe in a bit," Shannon replied clicking on the television. "Hey, look, an Adam Sandler comedy marathon is on. Want to watch?"  
  
Juvi quietly sat back down next to Shannon and shrugged. He handed Shannon a small glass of soda and started drinking his own. Shannon took it and set it down on the nightstand, leaning his back against the headboard. They watched in silence for a while, Juvi fidgeting mostly. Shannon sighed and picked up his soda, suddenly thirsty. He downed the small glass in one gulp and got up to get more. When he reached the bed again, he felt himself get woozy and had to set the glass down so as not to spill it.  
  
Juvi smiled and pulled Shannon down with him as the room began to spin for the blond. Juvi rolled Shannon over onto his back and leaned over him, kissing him deeply. The door of the room opened and Evan walked in as Juvi was reaching for Shannon's shirt.  
  
"You're right, mi amor," he grinned up at Evan as he approached the bed. "He is sweet."  
  
********************************  
  
"What are you doing here?" Shane demanded as Rick watched his approach. Scott was at a nearby table with two ladies, ignoring his brother as usual.  
  
The big man looked at him in confusion for a moment before answering. "What do you mean?"  
  
"Haven't you had enough excitement for one night?" Shane challenged. "Juvi's still reeling from it."  
  
"Juvi?" Rick asked. "What about that little shit? I haven't talked to him since I broke up with that asshole, Karagias."  
  
Shane's pulse quickened. "You didn't get into it with Juvi tonight?"  
  
"No!"  
  
"SHIT!" Shane started to stalk away.  
  
"Wait a second, Helms," Rick grabbed his arm. "You can't walk away without explaining that."  
  
Shane was quaking with fear for Shannon. But he knew Rick might be able to help him, so he stopped. "Juvi called Shannon just as we were coming here to meet our friends," he nodded toward Matt and Jeff, who were watching from the distance. "He said he'd fought with you and asked Shannon to stay with him"  
  
"Shit is right," Rick said getting up. "I'm coming with you."  
  
"You are?"  
  
"Yeah, and don't tell your friends," he instructed. "If they're doing to Shannon what they did to me, the less people that know the better."  
  
Shane's blood ran cold as he nodded and went back to Matt and Jeff to let them know he was leaving.  
  
********************************  
  
NOTE: Thanks again for the very appreciated reviews. I'm so glad you like the story!  
  
To Cat Lea Takersdarkone: Evan is Evan Karagias, the third member of 3 Count. Juvi is Juventud Guerrera, who was also in WCW. Sorry for not explaining that connection! 


	5. The cavalry

Shannon couldn't keep his head from swimming. He blinked furiously and struggled vainly to get Juvi off of him. Was that Evan's voice he was hearing? He couldn't be sure and he couldn't focus his eyes. This can't be happening, he thought to himself. His head swam again and he couldn't think straight. Suddenly he saw Jeff above him. Not as now, but as he was that night. He was smiling at Shannon and leaning in for a kiss.  
  
"Jeff," Shannon heard himself utter weakly, as he reached blindly back in time. Lips covered his own, but they didn't taste like the Jeff he remembered. He would never forget that taste. He opened his eyes and Juvi smiled back at him. "No," Shannon protested, pushing at his molester. "Let me go!"  
  
"Ease up, Juve," Evan's voice said from somewhere in the distance. Shannon couldn't focus but tried to look up at him. "Let the drug take full effect first. Then he won't fight you at all."  
  
"But I like the challenge," Juvi purred back.  
  
"But we want to be gentle with him the first time, don't we?" Evan reasoned, pulling Juvi off Shannon. "There'll be lots of other times to get kinky."  
  
"I guess," Juvi sighed. "Can we play while we wait?"  
  
"Oh yeah."  
  
Shannon heard nothing more than moans and kissing after that. He was slowly sinking into a dark abyss and he was afraid of what would happen when he did. Evan was supposed to care about him. Why was he doing this? His breathing began to become labored and he couldn't seem to keep his eyes open. He tried to lift his hand to his forehead but it felt like it weighed 300 pounds.  
  
"Almost there, Shannon," Evan's voice drifted over him like a velvet caress, and the blond felt fingers run through his hair. "Just let it happen."  
  
*******************************  
  
Shane raced into the hotel lobby after Rick and followed him up the stairs. No time to wait for the elevator tonight and Juvi was on the third floor, so it shouldn't take that long. Shane's heart was pounding so hard he could hear it in his ears. This was his "little brother" Shannon. He couldn't let this happen to him.  
  
Shane had tossed his car keys to Rick on the way out of the bar earlier, figuring he might have a cooler head to drive. Rick had relayed what those two psychos had done to him on the drive over, making sure to run any red lights they encountered. They figured if they picked up any patrol cars, they could lead the cops to Shannon's, well, Shane could barely think it much less say it, rapists.  
  
Rick told Shane that he and Evan had been dating for a little over a month when they started to get intimate. The first night was pretty normal to Rick and he thought things were going fine. The next night, however, Evan suggested they invite Juvi over to watch some tapes in the hotel room. Rick thought it was strange for a couple who just started having sex, but he wanted to make Evan happy so he agreed.  
  
Some point in the evening, after Evan had poured him a beer into a glass, which now that Rick thought about it was very strange, he got very dizzy and lay down. Juvi and Evan waited a bit and then they got into the bed with him and forced Rick into a threesome he'd never wanted nor consented to. The next morning when he awakened, the two, definitely rapists at this point, told him they'd made a tape and would show it to the guys unless he agreed to keep having sex with them.  
  
Scared and ashamed, Rick agreed at first. The sex got kinkier as the weeks went on and he knew he was losing just about every ounce of self-respect he had. With no other choice left to him, he finally went to his brother and told him what had happened. Scott was uncharacteristically angry on Rick's behalf. The two brothers never exhibited a close relationship before and Rick was sure Scott would be disgusted with him, especially since he was straight and never acknowledged Rick's sexual preference.  
  
But Scott wasn't as remote then as he normally was. He wanted to confront the two, but Rick asked him not to. Scott then asked Rick if he minded if he brought in some help. Rick didn't want anyone to know but Scott insisted this man wouldn't breathe a word. Next thing Rick knew, Scott brought in Sean Stasiak. Sean began shadowing Juvi, who was the less stable of the two.  
  
When Stasiak had Juvi's trust, he learned that there was no videotape and Scott moved in to kick some ass. When the dust settled, Evan and Juvi started spreading the rumors about Rick's temper. But that was all they did. Scared of what Scott would do to them, they steered clear of the Steiner brothers whenever possible.  
  
Shane's stomach twisted in knots the whole time. He was sure Matt and Jeff thought he'd snapped, too. When he slapped a five on the bar and told them he had to go, they were insistent on leaving with him. He told them Shannon was fine and that Rick had told him Shannon was sick and needed him. That's all. Jeff looked very concerned and pushed Matt off his stool to follow Shane out, but Shane had to stop them. Rick didn't want them along either. So Shane did what he had to do, and he didn't know why he felt so guilty either.  
  
"Jeff, it's not necessary," Shane growled. "I got it."  
  
"I'm his BEST friend," Jeff grunted back angrily. "When are you going to get past whatever the hell it is you're mad about?"  
  
"Probably never, all right?" Shane exploded. "I'M his best friend now."  
  
Both the Hardys were taken aback by that outburst. Jeff looked enraged and Matt looked sadly stunned.  
  
"Sugar?"  
  
"I'm sorry, Matt," Shane sighed looking into his friend's dark brown eyes. "You'll always be MY best friend. But Shannon needs ME right now, not Jeff."  
  
With that, he turned away and followed Rick out of the bar. He couldn't get Matt's betrayed look out of his head. The last thing he'd wanted to do was hurt Matt, but it was the only way to deter Jeff. And he even felt guilty about Jeff's reaction. Shannon will probably give him hell later for breaking his promise, but right now all he wanted was to save his little brother.  
  
They finally reached the door of Juvi's room. Rick listened for a second. They heard a low sound, Juvi's moan. Shane wanted to kick the door in, but Rick stopped him.  
  
"Knock," he whispered.  
  
"What!?"  
  
"Shh!" Rick whispered harshly. "Knock first. It'll get them off Shannon if they're on him, and get the door opened a little so Juvi can try to get rid of you."  
  
"THEN what?" Shane whispered back.  
  
"Then I push the door in and we start hurting them."  
  
"My favorite part," Shane hissed raising his fist to knock.  
  
*******************************  
  
Evan watched as Juvi removed Shannon's shirt. The blond moaned listlessly from the bed. He didn't even fight Juvi. He barely moved at all. Juvi looked up into Evan's eyes and grinned widely. Evan could see his lover was incredibly turned on. Hell, Evan was turned on seeing his lover and his soon-to-be lover laid out on the bed like this. He licked his lips and moved forward.  
  
"He's ready now, right mi amor?" Juvi asked pleadingly.  
  
"Hell yeah," Evan laughed. "He's definitely ready."  
  
Juvi bent over Shannon and licked the blond's nipple, moaning.  
  
"Jeff," Shannon sucked in a gasp and made a feeble attempt to pull back.  
  
That Hardy boy's name again, Evan thought, shaking his head. So that's why Shannon was so shy. He had a thing for his good friend, Jeff.  
  
"Jeff's not here, Shannon," Evan said silkily. "But we'll make sure you don't miss him."  
  
A knock suddenly sounded on the door and both and Juvi froze.  
  
"Jeff," Shannon called out, barely above a whisper. Evan put his hand over Shannon's mouth and motioned for Juvi to get rid of whoever was at the door.  
  
"Juvi? Shannon?" Shane's voice came through the door.  
  
"Shaney," Shannon whispered against Evan's palm.  
  
"Shit," Juvi whispered as he stepped to the door. "Yeah, Shane?"  
  
"Juvi, where's Shannon?"  
  
"Uh, he went to the store to get us some more beer," Juvi said as calmly as he could.  
  
"I figured I'd drop off some clothes for him since he's staying with you tonight," Shane said. "Can you open the door so I can leave them for him?"  
  
The bed wasn't visible from the open door, but Evan didn't want to take any chances. He pulled Shannon's drugged form off the bed and carried him into the bathroom, laying him in the corner, before Juvi opened the door. Suddenly, he heard a crash and Juvi grunted in obvious pain. Evan locked the door, even though he knew it would be futile. The door gave with one blow and Evan found himself face to face with a furious Shane Helms.  
  
"What the FUCK do you think your doing, Karagias?" Shane raged as he pulled back his fist and connected hard with Evan's chin. Evan reeled and almost fell back onto Shannon, but Shane grabbed a fistful of his shirt and rammed his head into the sink.  
  
"He's NOT your bitch!" Shane raged on. Evan's head exploded with pain and he felt blood drip into his eyes.  
  
"Shane, stop!" he tried to hold up his hand in protest.  
  
"Stop?" Shane yelled. "Stop? You mean like you stopped when Shanny undoubtedly told you to? Stop like that?" He bent down, picked Evan up and threw him out of the bathroom and into the wall.  
  
Rick was waiting and picked Evan up by his neck.  
  
"No, allow me," Scott said from the doorway. He grabbed Evan and punched him in the stomach. "I TOLD you I'd get you if you ever tried that shit again! Did you think I only meant if you tried it on my brother?" He kneed Evan in the balls and threw him on the bed next to an equally bloody and beaten Juvi.  
  
Shane emerged from the bathroom carrying an unconscious Shannon. Both Steiners looked sadly at the blond kid.  
  
"At least we stopped them before they raped him," Rick said.  
  
"I'm just sorry I didn't get there in time to save you, bro," Scott replied.  
  
With one last look at their beaten quarry, the men left the room.  
  
*******************************  
  
Shane lay Shannon carefully on the blond's bed and smoothed back his hair. Shannon didn't stir and seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep. Shane only hoped he would be okay.  
  
"Maybe we should get him to the hospital," Shane said to his two new friends.  
  
"I don't know if he'd like that," Rick sighed. "I know that's the last place I wanted to be. You know what will happen to him if it gets out what those two punks did to him. He'll be pegged the new company slut and his career will tank."  
  
"But what if he's not okay?"  
  
"They didn't want to kill him, Shane," Scott reasoned. "They wanted to rape him and convince him to allow the sex to continue."  
  
"I was like this, too," Rick said through gritted teeth.  
  
"How can we protect him?" Shane asked suddenly. "They left Rick alone because of you, Scott. I can't keep them away from him for good. Evan's in our damned tag team and Juvi's on the team we're feuding against."  
  
"I can help you look out for him," Scott offered.  
  
"But you and Rick can't be there all the time for him," Shane argued. "And they'll probably start spreading shit about him so the other guys make plays for him."  
  
"There's only one way to stop that," Rick said dangerously. "You know the unspoken rule. No guy will go after another guy's babe. It's a code or something."  
  
Shane looked at Rick sideways.  
  
"No, can't be me," Rick shook his head. "You know what a field day they'd have with that. Tell everyone that two of Karagias' exes got together because they can't get over Evan. We'd both catch it."  
  
"Before you ask, it can't be me either," Scott piped in. "Everyone knows what a lady's man I am. I doubt it would be believable even if I could pull it off. And Stasiak's straight, too."  
  
Shane grunted in resignation.  
  
"So, you're straight then?" Scott asked.  
  
"No," Shane said. "You must have heard about my messy breakup with Kidman."  
  
"I did," Rick said. "But I didn't want to say anything. Sorry, man."  
  
"It's okay," Shane sighed looking at Shannon's sleeping form in the bed. He looked so small and helpless now. Shane knew he would do whatever he had to in order to protect the small blond. "I have no plans to start dating any time soon anyway."  
  
"We'll back you up and watch out for both of you," Rick said.  
  
"So will Stasiak," Scott vowed. "And anyway, you two have been friends forever. More people would believe it."  
  
Shane nodded, never taking his eyes off Shannon. He hoped he could convince Shannon that, barring involving the police or the company management, this was the only way to go. He also hoped they could make everyone believe it.  
  
*******************************  
  
Thanks for reviewing my last chapter! I hope this one was also to your liking! 


	6. Here we go

"Shanny, it's the only way I can think of to protect you," Shane pleaded as the blond rocked back and forth on his bed curled up in the fetal position. Tears streamed down his face and the only sounds Shane could hear were short, pitiful sobs. "I know it sucks," Shane sighed, sitting next to Shannon and lifting the trembling blond's hair out of his face. "I know it's not what you want. I'm not who you want. I don't want to have to this either, but I can't let anyone else try to hurt you like that again."  
  
"It's not just that," Shannon finally whispered. "I hate that you have to give up your social life like this."  
  
"I'm still smarting over the Kidman mess," Shane smiled wryly. "It's not like I've been burning up the sheets."  
  
"But still."  
  
"No," Shane said softly, but firmly. "But nothing. The other guys will become a problem and you know it. Those are two vindictive psychos." He felt Shannon shudder and grimaced, but he had to be firm. "Look, it's only for show in front of the locker room. I won't do anything to you you're not comfortable with, just kiss you lightly now and again and touch and hold you a bit more."  
  
"It's not that I don't trust you, Shane," Shannon finally lifted his tear- stained green eyes to meet Shane's dark brown gaze. "I just hate this whole thing. I never intended to get involved with a guy after Jeff left me. I wasn't sure I was even going to sleep with Evan when things were good. Now suddenly I have to make it public, at least at work, that I have a boyfriend just to keep the other guys from bothering me. This isn't the life I imagined when I started wrestling."  
  
"I know, kid," Shane said soothingly. "And I'm sorry."  
  
There was a deafening silence in the room for a few minutes while Shane allowed Shannon to come to terms with the plan.  
  
"You can say it, you know," Shannon said so softly Shane almost didn't hear him.  
  
"Say what?"  
  
"You can tell me you warned me about him."  
  
"I'd never say that," Shane said a little more sharply than he'd intended. Shannon winced and closed his eyes. "Shanny," he said more gently, "I'd never rub your nose in this. I love you like a brother and I'd never, ever want this to happen to you."  
  
"I know," the small blond acknowledged, opening his eyes and looking at Shane. "You know I trust you," he said very seriously. Shane nodded. "You know that I just want you to be happy and that putting off your dating to protect me makes me feel guilty."  
  
"And you know that if anything happened to you because we didn't go through with this plan, I couldn't live with it," Shane returned just as seriously."  
  
"Well, then," Shannon sighed. "When do we start?"  
  
"Today," Shane said, relieved Shannon finally accepted it. "We all know they'll start the rumor mill as soon as possible to get a jump on us. They'll be expecting me to keep you away from work to recover, so they'll do their damnedest to tell everyone."  
  
"Any idea what they'll say?"  
  
"Considering the condition the Steiners and I left them in last night, they'll probably try to use that in their story," Shane hypothesized. "I'm guessing they're going to tell everyone that you and Evan were planning to get, uh, intimate and Rick or Scott burst in to break it up. Most likely Rick, as they want to get back at him for telling Scott about them."  
  
"And how do you think they'll explain Juvi's face?" Shannon asked, fascinated. Shane could see that, though the smaller man was shaken from his ordeal, he was pleased as hell that his attackers were beaten so badly.  
  
"I'm guessing they'll say that he tried to help," Shane said, shaking his head. "They'll think they have their stories cemented because we won't be there."  
  
"But we will," Shannon said nervously.  
  
"I'm sorry to put you through this so soon, buddy," Shane groaned. "But we have to take them off guard."  
  
"Do you think anyone will believe us?" Shannon asked worriedly. "They can be so convincing."  
  
"Everyone will believe," Shane said, smoothing Shannon's hair back again. "Rick and Scott will back us up. Stasiak, too."  
  
Shannon nodded and looked away.  
  
***************************  
  
"You wouldn't believe those assholes," Evan told Rey Mysterio in the back locker room. "There I was with the guy I consider MY property and they break down the door to take him away from me. I haven't seen him since."  
  
"What did he say as they took him?" Rey asked.  
  
"Nothing, They knocked him out," Evan shook his head. "I only hope they haven't hurt him. I'm pretty worried about him."  
  
"You think they'll show tonight?"  
  
"Would you if you were them?" Evan asked.  
  
"Well, I'll look out for them for you, anyway. You never know," Rey patted his arm as he walked to the mirror to adjust his horn accessory.  
  
Evan smiled maliciously to himself. So far he had told his story to half the roster and they were all upset on his behalf. This would turn out well for him and Juvi after all. They would spread these tales while Shane and the Steiners helped Shannon recover. Then, when Shannon returned to work, they would corner him and tell him that the guys have been told their version of the story already and wouldn't believe him. They would further inform him that if he didn't come to them willingly, they would make sure the guys went after his good friend and "brother" Shane. Evan knew Shannon would do anything to keep Shane out of trouble and would very willingly return to Evan and Juvi. Evan could hardly wait.  
  
Suddenly the locker room door opened and Shannon stepped warily into the room. Evan froze at the sight. He never credited Shannon with the balls to come in after what had happened. Still, he was alone. Evan snapped into action.  
  
"Shannon, sweetheart, what happened to you?" Evan exclaimed.  
  
Rey looked up and saw the blond standing awkwardly in the doorway. "Hey, man," he said gently. He didn't want to scare him. "Ev told me someone took you last night. Are you all right?"  
  
Shannon looked from Evan to Rey and nodded. Just then the door opened again and Shane strode into the room locking his arms around Shannon's waist and narrowing his eyes at Evan.  
  
"He ain't bothering you again, is he, honey?" Shane asked in a deceptively soft voice. Rey knew that tone well. It was the one a man used when he intended to protect what was his. Suddenly Evan's story wasn't holding up.  
  
"ME bothering him?" Evan asked in shock. "YOU'RE the one who sicced the brothers Steiner on me to take him away."  
  
"He was never yours," Shane growled. "I told you to keep your hands off him at least a million times. If we weren't in the same tag group, I'd have kicked your ass the first time you tried."  
  
"Oh, but you decided to let someone else do it instead," Evan sneered.  
  
"You don't remember how I smashed your head into the bathroom sink, Ev?" Shane taunted. "I must have given you a concussion then. Maybe you should see the medic."  
  
"You didn't do as much damage as Scott!"  
  
"Scott punched you in the stomach and low-blowed you," Shane laughed. "Everything else, well, let's just say I consider you a work of art."  
  
"You aren't dating him," Evan looked amused. "Prove it."  
  
"Enough!" Shannon shrieked. Rey jumped at the blond's high-pitched voice. "I love Shane, Evan," Shannon continued. "I've always loved Shane. Why can't you just take 'no' for an answer?"  
  
"You never said," Evan began.  
  
"I've always said!" Shannon shot back angrily. "Look, Shane and I were keeping our relationship a secret for a while because he didn't want to hurt Billy's feelings after what happened. They were together for a while. But I ALWAYS belonged to him while you were chasing me."  
  
"Then why did you go out with me?!?" Evan argued.  
  
"We went out a couple of times as friends," Shannon shot back. "When you started making advances I told you NO!" This last part was shouted with such vehemence, Evan stepped back.  
  
"See?" Shane smirked, pulling Shannon back to him and brushing his lips against the blond's before looking back to Evan in victory. "I told you he was with me."  
  
Shannon nuzzled Shane's neck, keeping his back to Evan.  
  
"Shannon," Evan tried again.  
  
"Go back to your concubine," Shane growled.  
  
"But," Evan said.  
  
"Leave him alone," Rey said, pushing Evan towards the door. "I can't believe you tried to break the rule."  
  
Evan slammed out the door without another word. There was nothing he could do about this right now. But it wasn't over yet, he vowed. He was still aching for Shannon's sweet body. If Helms thought he could get away with this, he was kidding himself. Juvi and Evan would get what they wanted one way or another. This was only the beginning.  
  
***************************  
  
Thanks again for the GREAT, fantastic, wonderful and much appreciated reviews! 


	7. Telling Matt and Jeff

Jeff and Matt trudged into their father's house and dropped their luggage. The older Hardy brother went to check the stack of mail while Jeff plodded into the TV room and plopped himself on the couch. He was just starting to zone out when Matt threw himself down next to him.  
  
"I'm beat," Matt announced.  
  
"No kidding," Jeff said not even bothering to open his eyes.  
  
"We're still going out tonight, right?"  
  
"Yeah," Jeff answered. "I haven't seen Shan since before he got sick. I want to know how he is."  
  
"And I need to talk to Shane," Matt said in a somewhat sad voice.  
  
"Matt, he was just pissed at me as usual," Jeff said looking over to his brother. "He even said you'll always be his best friend. Don't make too much out of it."  
  
"Mmmm."  
  
"I know that tone, bro," Jeff grinned. "What's going on?"  
  
"What do you mean?" Matt asked defensively.  
  
"Can't hide it from me forever," Jeff reasoned. "Just get it over with and tell me."  
  
"It's nothing," Matt replied crossing his arms over his chest. Now Jeff knew something was up.  
  
"Look, either you tell me or I'll torture you all night."  
  
"Uh huh," Matt said looking smug.  
  
"In front of Shane."  
  
"You wouldn't!" Matt's eyes narrowed.  
  
"I'm sorry, have we met?" Jeff laughed. "My name's Jeff and I'm the bane of your existence."  
  
Matt grunted and looked down.  
  
"Seriously, Matt," Jeff said. "What's going on with you and Shane? I know it's him because you get jumpy every time we're planning to see him."  
  
"You wouldn't understand," Matt sighed.  
  
Jeff looked his brother over more critically, taking in the nervous posture and shifting eyes. He'd been wondering lately if there was anything to the feeling he was getting, now he supposed he had his answer.  
  
"I understand a lot more than you think," Jeff finally said sadly. "Trust me on that."  
  
Matt's eyes jumped back to Jeff's wildly. He stared at him for a few long moments, seemingly unsure of what Jeff was trying to tell him. Then Jeff could see realization dawn on Matt, followed quickly by a look of relief mixed with pity.  
  
"Shannon?"  
  
"Yeah," Jeff answered quietly, not bothering to look away from Matt's inquisitive gaze.  
  
"For how long?"  
  
"Years," Jeff shrugged. "Since the end of high school."  
  
"Damn," Matt whistled. "Why didn't you say anything?"  
  
"What could I say?" Jeff demanded. "'Gee, bro, I'm in love with my best friend and he's straight. So I'm trying to get him out of my system with Beth, but it's not really working out that well, and I'd rather Shannon not know.' What would you have said?"  
  
"I would have said, 'I know how you feel,'" Matt returned just as annoyed. "It would have been nice to know someone else understood what I'm going through, Jeff."  
  
"Matt, we both know Shane's gay," Jeff rolled his eyes. "Why don't you just tell him?"  
  
"He was going out with Kidman for so long, I gave up," Matt sighed. "Now that they've broken up, it just feels wrong to throw this at him, you know?"  
  
"You don't have to make a pass at him," Jeff argued. "Just let him know you care and you're available if he's interested."  
  
"Oh, now THAT doesn't sound too desperate," Matt countered.  
  
Jeff laughed at the situation. Here he and Matt were, talking like a couple of teenage girls with crushes on the school's cutest guys. Okay, WCW's cutest guys. He couldn't help himself. Matt looked at him strangely for a few seconds then broke down laughing along with him.  
  
"We're pathetic, huh?" Matt said, wiping the tears from his eyes.  
  
"Nah," Jeff replied. "Just scared."  
  
"I'm still too scared," Matt said quietly.  
  
"I know how you feel."  
  
**********************************  
  
"I guess we have to tell Matt and Jeff's what's going on," Shannon said glumly from the passenger's seat of Shane's car. They were on their way to meet the Hardys after getting home earlier that afternoon.  
  
"We don't have to tell anyone anything you don't want to," Shane said, taking his eyes off the road briefly to check on Shannon.  
  
"They're our best friends," Shannon said softly. "And the rumors will get to their locker room. You know that."  
  
"Probably," Shane replied. "I'm sorry, Shanny."  
  
"Not your fault, Shaney," Shannon sighed. "You've been nothing but good to me since this whole thing started."  
  
Shane made a noncommittal grunt and kept his eyes on the road. The rest of the week had gone well. He and Shannon had fallen into a routine of sorts. The blond had finally stopped jumping every time Shane touched him, which was good. Rey had seen the jumps at first and questioned if Shannon was being abused when Shane had left the room. Shannon covered by explaining that Evan had scared him badly and he was still recovering.  
  
The small Latino just rubbed Shannon's arm and told him if he ever needed anyone to protect him, he should come find Rey. It was a wake up call for the blond, as he knew what Mysterio meant. Should Rey find out that Shannon ever wanted to leave Shane, Rey would be there to take Shane's place. And Shannon got the feeling that he might not be as receptive to the word 'no' as Shane. At least Shannon knew Rey would respect the rule until then.  
  
Shane nearly hit the ceiling when Shannon told him what had happened. It just reinforced his need to protect his "little brother" all the more. And now Shannon understood that the plan couldn't just be dropped even after the danger from Evan and Juvi passed. There were predators among their colleagues and Shannon was considered a prize now that the locker room knew he'd dated men. Shane worried all the more for him. He was glad the Steiners and Stasiak were backing them up. If they weren't, some of those predators would disregard the rule altogether, or just take Shane out of the scene to get to Shannon.  
  
"I'll be fine," Shannon asserted. "But I have to tell Jeff at least a little bit."  
  
Shane grunted again.  
  
"Don't be that way, Shane," the blond whined. "He's still my best friend and I care about his feelings."  
  
"You care more about his than he does about yours."  
  
"Well, you care more about mine than you do about Matt's," Shannon countered.  
  
Shane nearly ran the car off the road, but pulled the wheel back just in time. "What do you mean by that, Shanny?"  
  
"Stop calling me that," Shannon suddenly looked vexed. Shane bit back a smile and shook his head.  
  
"Tell me," he demanded.  
  
"Matt's hurt, Shane," Shannon sighed. "Can't you see that?"  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"Jeff told me what you said when I last talked to him," the blond replied. "Matt's feelings are hurt and you act like you don't even know."  
  
"I didn't know," Shane asserted. "My only concern that night was you. It still is."  
  
"I know," Shannon said and guiltily looked away. "But there's no need to hurt Matt, too. He'll only end up resenting me if we don't explain."  
  
"Why would he resent you?"  
  
"Because you'll be spending most of your time with me," Shannon held up a hand. "Don't try to pretend that's not true. It is. You know how you get when I'm in trouble."  
  
Shane shrugged, as he knew he couldn't argue.  
  
"And Matt won't understand if we don't tell him," Shannon went on. "I don't want him to start hating me like you do Jeff."  
  
"I don't HATE Jeff," Shane growled. "I just don't like him."  
  
"Mmmhmm," Shannon said. "And that dislike will keep you from leaving me alone with him again if you can help it. I know it will."  
  
"Well, if anyone finds out that I let you spend time alone with him, it will put you in danger," Shane argued.  
  
"Which will lead to Matt hating me," Shannon finally finished glumly. "I like Matt and I don't want to be the reason he's hurting."  
  
"I don't want to hurt him either," Shane conceded. "All right, you can tell them what you feel you need to. But you should maybe avoid mentioning any names. This business is small and our friends act first and think second. Okay?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
**********************************  
  
Matt and Jeff slid into the booth opposite Shane and Shannon. The four eyed each other awkwardly before Jeff finally broke the silence.  
  
"How are you, bud?" he asked looking the smaller blond over carefully.  
  
"Not bad now," Shannon said. "But if Shane hadn't been there for me, who knows what would have happened."  
  
"He said you were sick," Matt cut in a little more harsh than Jeff had expected him to be. Jeff looked over and saw that he, too, was watching Shannon carefully, but with much less concern.  
  
"Yeah, well I would have been if he didn't come for me," Shannon replied.  
  
Shane sat stoically in his seat. He'd been glaring at Jeff at first. But now he merely stared warily across the table at his best friend, looking like he wanted to jump in to keep Matt from interrogating Shannon, but he wasn't quite sure what to say. Jeff was stunned by this and almost missed Shannon's next statement.  
  
"The thing was, he'd found out someone was trying to, well, trying to," Shannon stopped and looked down. He was suddenly sweating and his face was flushed.  
  
"Trying to what?" Matt demanded quietly. Shannon began to shake.  
  
"Trying to rape him," Shane completed Shannon's sentence and put his arm around the smaller man's shoulder. "Matt, back the hell down. He's been through enough this week."  
  
Matt's face paled considerably and Jeff's stomach about dropped out of his body. Both Hardys gasped and leaned forward.  
  
"Shan!" Jeff exclaimed. "What happened?"  
  
Shannon's eyes began to tear but he sucked in the sobs that Jeff could see were trying to get out. A few long minutes later he'd collected himself and recounted a horrible story that Jeff knew would give him nightmares. He'd been planning to see Jeff and Matt with Shane that night when an acquaintance called and said he needed Shannon to stay with him after getting into a fight. Shane reluctantly left him at the guy's door and went out. Once inside, Shannon was attacked and nearly raped by the guy and one of his friends, but Shane and Rick Steiner got there just in time. Now Shane was pretending to be with Shannon to keep the other, less trustworthy guys away from him.  
  
Jeff was doubly horrified for Shannon because the poor blond was straight and now he had to pretend to be gay and with one of his closer friends to stay safe. It was probably among a straight man's worst nightmare. Jeff warred with another emotion he was feeling rearing up on him, too: jealousy. God, how he wished he were Shane right now. He tried to tamp down the insane feeling, but it wouldn't leave. He looked at Matt to see how he was taking this. The older man looked stricken by conflicting emotions as well. He sighed and looked back across the table, touching Shannon's hand. Shannon was startled at first, but relaxed his hand into Jeff's with a sigh. Shane just stared at the two Hardys with an unreadable expression.  
  
"I'm sorry, Shannon," Matt whispered. "I'm so sorry."  
  
"You didn't know," the blond sniffled. "I told Shane we had to tell you two. I don't want to start trouble between us all. We're best friends. I need all of you."  
  
The Hardys nodded and Shane lifted an eyebrow. Jeff looked at him carefully. He knew the other man still didn't like him, but they were all bound together now. At last Shane decided to speak again.  
  
"No one can know," he said, not looking away from Jeff. "No one."  
  
"But the police," Matt said.  
  
"No one," Shane repeated, shifting his gaze to Matt's. "Shannon has already been targeted by some of the more aggressive guys."  
  
"WHO?" Jeff growled in outrage. No one would hurt his best friend again. He wanted to hunt down the ones who had. "Who's after him and who did this to him?" He demanded, glaring at Shane. He knew instinctively that Shannon wouldn't tell him. Shane had most likely suggested that. If he had to deal with his nemesis to get the names, he'd do it gladly. "Who, Shane?"  
  
"Jeff, calm down," Matt said touching Jeff's arm.  
  
"No, I will NOT calm down," he growled, never looking away from Shane's sarcastic expression. "I want to know who did this to MY best friend. I also want to know why you wouldn't let ME come help him that night. I know you don't like me, Shane, and I don't know why. But, quite frankly, I'm beyond caring about that. Now you're interfering in MY relationship with him," he said pointing at a sullen-faced Shannon. "Now, I don't care if I have to hound you forever, but you WILL tell me who did this to him. Eventually. You might as well save yourself the torment and give me what I want to know."  
  
Shane looked back at Jeff in stony silence. Well then, Jeff thought, let the games begin.  
  
**********************************  
  
I LOVE REVIEWS! Thank you all! 


	8. Detective Jeff, on the case

Almost one year later . . .  
  
The McMahons just bought WCW and fired a slew of wrestlers. Shannon was relieved to discover that he would have a job, but it would be with WWF's training branch. While he was a little miffed to be placed in a training organization, he was happy to still have a job. And the best part was that Evan was one of the fired. Juvi had been let go before the company changed hands over an incident in Australia and Shannon couldn't be happier about that.  
  
He and Shane remained together as far as their locker room buddies were concerned. A few of the guys still made Shane worry about Shannon, who had to admit that he was nervous too, as Rey Mysterio still hadn't lost interest. The blond would catch Rey leering at him when Shane wasn't around. It was unnerving.  
  
The Steiners weren't picked up in the new deal, but Scott, especially, would be a hot commodity once the old WCW contracts ran out, as would Kevin Nash and Bill Goldberg. Until then, they would rest at home and collect nice paychecks. Sean Stasiak was slated for WWF, too, which was something Shannon took comfort in. Shane would be going there and it was good to know he would have an ally.  
  
Of course Matt and Jeff were already there but were established stars. Shane would be starting from the bottom again with a new gimmick. At least he would be featured on television. Shannon wasn't worried for his own safety. Since he and Shane were still considered together and most of the guys accepted that now, he could still feel safe. He'd already made friends with a few of the guys in his new fed and knew they wouldn't let anyone jump him.  
  
As for Jeff, Shannon sighed, things hadn't changed. Shannon still loved his best friend but couldn't tell him. He still bought a bottle of Jack every now and then and sat thinking alone in his room when Shane wasn't around. He knew Jeff cared for him as deeply as Shane because he hadn't let Sugar alone about the incident, as promised. Every few weeks or so, when they all got together, Jeff was like a bloodhound. He questioned, demanded, and interrogated Shane, who continued to refuse to tell him who had attacked Shannon.  
  
Jeff was just as intense on the rare occasions he was able to get Shannon alone. But Shannon worried that Jeff would get into trouble and would only tell Jeff to drop the issue. Jeff wasn't cooperating and Shannon wondered how much longer he could hold out. Jeff was determined and Shannon found it harder and harder to keep the secret, especially when Jeff cornered him with his fierce green gaze.  
  
For his part, Matt quietly tried to help Jeff in his quest. He apparently knew his brother would eventually find the guys on his own and decided he should be there to back him up when he did. This only served to aggravate Shane, who made sure he and Shannon avoided both Hardys whenever possible and, if they had to meet, made arrangements to do so in highly public and restrictive locations. It's hard to interrogate someone in a movie theater.  
  
Shannon packed the rest of his suitcase and prepared to fly out for his new organization.  
  
*********************************  
  
Jeff waited in the airport anxiously. He knew Shannon was flying out today and it would be a perfect opportunity to get to him without Shane around. The other man was busy with a family function today and that meant Shannon would be alone. He spied the blond checking his bag at the American Airlines counter and made sure he stood in Shannon's path. When Shannon turned around, Jeff was amused to see the frown etched into his boyish face.  
  
"Sorry, Shan," Jeff grinned. "I couldn't let you go without trying again."  
  
"Please leave it alone, Jeff," Shannon said tiredly. "I have to go."  
  
"Your flight doesn't leave for two hours."  
  
"Please, Jeff," Shannon pleaded, his green eyes dancing nervously. "Not like this."  
  
"Not like what?" Jeff asked, walking with him to a deserted lounge area.  
  
"Don't grill me here."  
  
"I have to, Shannon," Jeff insisted, pushing his friend down onto a bench and sitting next to him. "I've given you a year and you still haven't told me the whole story. Don't tell me there isn't more to it than that."  
  
Shannon looked down at the floor and Jeff felt guilty for pressuring him. But he had to know who had done this to him. He may not be able to have the relationship with Shannon that he wanted, but he could damned well make sure no one hurt him. And it was his place to protect the small blond, not Shane's. Jeff and Shannon had too much history for the younger Hardy to let this get by unchallenged.  
  
"Shan," he coaxed gently. "You have to tell me what happened. It's eating me up inside, baby."  
  
Jeff almost bit his tongue. He hadn't meant to use the endearment, and had refrained from it since that night. But he couldn't help how he felt. Shannon was his baby, even if he didn't know it. And he caught the flicker of light that passed through Shannon's eyes, even though he was looking down. He thought, though, that it had to be anger at the memories.  
  
"Jeff, please," Shannon whined again. "I can't go through the story again."  
  
Jeff put an arm around Shannon's shoulder and rubbed. "I know it's hard," he purred. He didn't want to upset the smaller man anymore than he already had. "But I need to know. If you don't tell me the names, please just tell me the whole story."  
  
Shannon sniffled for a while but did nothing to extricate himself from Jeff's hold. This gave the Hardy boy a measure of comfort. He held Shannon while the younger man collected himself. He could feel the damn breaking. At least he was making some progress.  
  
"When I got to the room that night, J-," Shannon stopped. "He. He was crying from the fight he supposedly had and was wrapped in a blanket. There were no marks on his face, but I just assumed Ri-, Shannon stopped again. "That his opponent kept the blows below the neck."  
  
Jeff nodded for Shannon to continue, not giving away that he had mentally catalogued the two slipups as clues to be pursued later. Shannon was definitely the one who would break before Shane. As much as Jeff hated to do it to him, Shannon would be the one he pursued.  
  
"We were watching TV when he handed me a cup of soda," Shannon's voice was getting higher and he was sniffling even more with the memory. Jeff tightened his hold and smoothed the blond's hair. "After I drank it, I got dizzy and started to lose consciousness."  
  
"Son of a bitch!" Jeff muttered, his eyes darkening sharply unbeknownst to Shannon whose head was down on Jeff's chest. Jeff continued to stroke Shannon's hair and hold him, waiting for him to continue.  
  
"He started kissing me and touching me," Shannon went on in a shaky voice that broke Jeff's heart. "I couldn't move. Then, his boyfriend, only I didn't know that then, came in and they both waited for the drug to finish affecting me before they started. When it did and they started touching me again, Shane burst in. That's all I remember from that night."  
  
Jeff could feel the tears drench the front of his shirt. Shannon was quietly crying through the retelling and Jeff felt so bad for what he had done, but he had to do it. He held the blond tighter and tried to keep calm as he collected his thoughts.  
  
"Shan?" he finally asked.  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"Please tell me who did it."  
  
"I can't, Jeffy," Shannon sighed, using his old nickname and looking up at him through tear-stained eyes. "I promised Rick and Shane I wouldn't."  
  
But you will, baby, Jeff thought. You're going to have no choice eventually. Yet outwardly Jeff just nodded and kissed his forehead. Shannon sighed and relaxed into Jeff's embrace as they waited for his flight to be called.  
  
*********************************  
  
Shannon settled into his seat an hour or so later and stared out the plane window sadly. He knew Jeff would wait until he was in the air before he left. Jeff was always trying to protect him these days.  
  
Shannon also knew Shane would blow a fuse when he found out Shannon had told Jeff the rest of the story. He'd wanted to continue to deflect the purple-haired man, but he honestly couldn't refuse him. When Jeff turned that determined look onto Shannon, all the smaller man could do was give him what he wanted. He loved him too much to refuse.  
  
Shannon also knew that Jeff would be more determined than ever now. The hunt for Shannon's abusers had become Jeff's crusade. Matt's, too. Shane was caught in the middle and Shannon felt bad about that. Matt and Shane's friendship was strained and Shane often kept Shannon away from Jeff as well. How long could the two of them hold up against two determined Hardy boys?  
  
All Shannon knew was that it felt good to be in Jeff's arms again. Damned good. He could see himself buying a bottle of Jack in the near future.  
  
*********************************  
  
"Matt!" Jeff called. "Hey, Matt!"  
  
"What's up?" Matt asked from the TV room.  
  
Jeff walked in on him sprawled on the couch watching some racing cars round the track. Matt moved a bit and Jeff plopped down on the couch, staring at his brother.  
  
"What?" Matt asked again as he clicked off the TV.  
  
"I got some info out of Shannon," Jeff said.  
  
Matt was instantly alert and sat up sharply. "Tell me."  
  
"I still don't know who it was yet," Jeff began, his eyes darkening to green storms. "But I know more about what happened."  
  
"Tell me already!"  
  
"They drugged him," Jeff said in a cold voice. Matt's heart skipped a beat.  
  
"They what?"  
  
"They drugged him and had planned to rape him that way," Jeff said, and related the entire story as he'd heard it.  
  
Matt felt his own anger rise within him. That someone could do that to their friend, who was almost like blood to them, well to Matt anyway, this couldn't go unpunished. No way. Shane was going to open up about this. He couldn't fight both Hardys on his own now that Shannon was in another fed. They wouldn't let this go.  
  
"Hey," Jeff said. "We now know that one of them has a name beginning with a 'J'."  
  
Matt nodded.  
  
"We also know that his supposed fight was with someone whose name begins with 'RI'," Jeff went on. "How much you want to bet that's Rick Steiner?"  
  
"I ain't losing money on that bet," Matt growled. "It would explain why Shane left with him so suddenly that night."  
  
"We just have to connect him with someone whose name begins with 'J'," Jeff said. "I'll keep working on Shannon."  
  
"You sure that's a good idea?"  
  
"No," Jeff conceded. "But it's probably the quickest. I can't go on like this."  
  
"I know," Matt agreed. "Me either. I'll work Sugar." He got up and grabbed his car keys.  
  
"You think you can?"  
  
"Oh yeah," Matt said softly. "I won't let him get out of it this time."  
  
*********************************  
  
Author's note: Hardy Boyz, PI! How'd I do? 


	9. Confronting your fears

Shane sighed in resignation as he watched Matt trudge into his house. He'd just returned from his cousin's barbecue and was in too good a mood to concentrate on deflecting Matt's questions. And he knew there could only be one reason for Matt's visit, too: Shannon. The Hardys had teamed up outside the ring now and he and Shannon were their current targets. He only hoped the small blond had been able to get onto his plane without Hardy interference. Somehow, though, Shane knew that wasn't the case.  
  
"What's up, Matt?" he asked, closing the door behind him.  
  
"Level with me, Sugar."  
  
"Matt, we've been through this," Shane sighed again, pushing his hair back with one hand.  
  
"How long have we been friends?" Matt asked, his eyes betraying the softly spoken words.  
  
"A long, long time, buddy."  
  
"Why can't you trust me, then?"  
  
"Trust you?" Shane cried. "I trust you with my life!"  
  
"But not Shannon's?" Matt asked as he took a seat on a chair in the living room.  
  
"Matt, this isn't the time," Shane pleaded, following his friend in and dropping into the nearby couch.  
  
"When will be the time?"  
  
"Look, he's been through enough already."  
  
"I'm not interested in putting him through any more pain," Matt sighed. "I just want to help you keep him safe."  
  
"You can't," Shane said. "As far as the guys in wrestling are concerned, he's dating me. That's what's keeping him safe."  
  
"From them," Matt warned.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"What about the guys who attacked him?" Matt asked. "Do you think they've given up on him?"  
  
"Well, I certainly hope so," Shane said, not liking the new worry at all. "It's been a year."  
  
"Is that really long enough?"  
  
Shane stared into his best friends eyes and contemplated that thought. He'd been sure that when Evan and Juvi were out of Shannon's working environment, they'd find someone else to obsess over. But Matt's logic was slowly eroding that theory. If Matt and Jeff hadn't lost interest in the situation, what about two psychos like Evan and Juvi? And now Shannon was stuck in the developmental fed on his own.  
  
**********************************  
  
Matt could almost read the thoughts going through Shane's mind. He knew his friend well and these were the right buttons to press. Matt didn't want to break Shane's resolve, but he did want the other man to share the responsibility of protecting Shannon with him, and with Jeff. That was another thing, come to think of it. He wanted to get to the bottom of that mystery, too. Well, no time like now.  
  
"Shaney?" he asked casually, drawing his friend's full attention. Matt never used the nickname unless he really wanted Shane's attention. He liked using it too much and didn't want Shane to start feeling uncomfortable around him.  
  
"Yeah?" Shane asked warily.  
  
"Why do you hate my brother?"  
  
Shane grunted and looked down. Matt could see that was another topic he didn't want to discuss. He wondered briefly which one Shane would choose to address.  
  
"I don't hate him, Matt," Shane finally said. "I just don't like what he did."  
  
"What did he do?"  
  
"It's not my story to tell, man," Shane said locking his dark brown gaze onto Matt's. Matt felt the usual stirrings heat his lower regions. He'd never get tired of looking into Shane's eyes. He just wished he could get his courage up enough to tell the man.  
  
"Whose then?" he asked when he found his voice again.  
  
"Shannon's."  
  
Shannon again. Everything was leading back to the small blond. Matt couldn't help feeling jealous. Before he could tamp down the feelings, his mouth kicked in.  
  
"Shannon again, huh?" he said. "Are you sure your relationship with him is really just for show?"  
  
"Matt, what the hell?" Shane growled. "Yes. He's not interested in dating me."  
  
"Because he's straight," Matt replied. "I get that. I don't get why you put your life on hold to make everyone believe he's yours. Are you sure you're not hoping all of this will somehow change his mind?"  
  
Matt watched as a multitude of emotions passed over Shane's face before finally settling into irritation.  
  
"Is that what Jeff's worried about now?" Shane yelled. "Did he send you here to make sure my intentions stay plutonic? Real ironic considering the source!"  
  
"What are you on about now?"  
  
"Never you mind," Shane narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Just go back and tell little Jeffrey I'm only concerned with Shannon's safety."  
  
"Jeff didn't ask," Matt said quietly. "I did."  
  
**********************************  
  
Shane regarded his friend as calmly as he could. He was unprepared for that uncharacteristic outburst from Matt. His sexuality had never been a problem between them before and he'd assumed it would remain that way. Matt knew about his relationships. He hadn't hidden them from him, but he didn't like to flaunt them. It was one thing for your straight best friend to accept your lifestyle, but quite another to rub his nose in it. He valued their relationship above all and this conversation hurt more than he cared to admit to himself. He was sorry Matt hadn't given him signs before now.  
  
"You never did tell me why you and Billy broke up," Matt said, effectively breaking the tense silence.  
  
"I didn't think you wanted to talk about that," Shane answered trying to keep the pain and betrayal out of his voice.  
  
"Why?" Matt asked. "You're my best friend. He was important to you. I feel like you want to just shut me out."  
  
"What?" Shane was very confused now. What the hell was going on here? "You never asked me about my relationships before, Matt. I didn't figure you wanted to know."  
  
"I did," the other man said. "I still do."  
  
Did Matt want the gory details? Fine. Shane would give them to him. Maybe then Matt would feel just as uncomfortable as he now did.  
  
"What do you want to know?" he asked, making sure Matt explained exactly what he wanted before Shane told him and tore a hole in their friendship forever.  
  
"Why did Billy break up with you?"  
  
"Why did Billy break up with me?" Shane repeated, stunned. "What makes you think it was his idea?"  
  
"You were so depressed when it happened," Matt mumbled.  
  
"Well, it was one of my longer relationships," Shane pointed out. "But to understand why I ended it, you have to know why I started it to begin with."  
  
**********************************  
  
Matt leaned back in the chair as calmly as he could. Shane was going to tell him. He was finally going to get the story behind that whole Kidman saga that had him twisted up in knots for so long. It was bad enough that he was struggling with his own inclinations back then, but he couldn't even talk about them with his own best friend because that was the man who ignited him. Then Billy Kidman came along and took him away.  
  
True, he was getting nowhere on the Shannon case, but this was suddenly far more important to him. The object of his affections was willing to open up a little about his past love and Matt would pay attention to every word, finally he would get the whole Billy story. He just wondered why Shane had taken on such a sad look.  
  
"Okay then," he said to Shane. "Why did you start it?"  
  
"You."  
  
Matt had to do a double take on that answer. What did he have to do with the whole mess?  
  
"I'm sorry, what?" he asked for clarification.  
  
"I asked Billy out because he reminded me of you," Shane said sadly. "I know you're straight and you're my best friend, but I developed a crush on you and I didn't want to make you uncomfortable with it."  
  
"So you dated Kidman?!"  
  
"He reminded me of you," Shane shrugged. "In a way, at least. After a while, that stopped and he needed more from me than I could give him. I let him down as easy as I could, but I know I hurt him. You know, he really is a good guy."  
  
"Why didn't you just talk to me?" Matt asked a small voice he didn't even know he possessed.  
  
"I didn't want to lose you as a friend," Shane said simply.  
  
Matt sat back in a stunned silence to think about this. He had loved Shane for so long, he could barely remember caring about anyone else. And now he found out that Shane had had a crush on him back when he was dating Billy. It was a crush, Shane had said. Matt didn't try to fool himself into believing the other man still harbored the feelings. He couldn't. Could he?  
  
**********************************  
  
Shane watched Matt's face carefully for the moment when the disgust would set in. He steeled himself against the hurt he knew it would cause him. But Matt had to know the truth, he decided. It was only right.  
  
"Do you still?" Matt suddenly asked.  
  
"Do I still what?" Shane replied. He knew what Matt was asking, but he didn't want to answer that question.  
  
"Do you still have that crush?"  
  
Shane squirmed uncomfortably on the couch. This would be the final blow to what had been the most important friendship in his life. He sighed and looked away from the painful depths of Matt's eyes.  
  
"Yeah," he bit out sadly, waiting for Matt's tirade to begin.  
  
He wasn't expecting to be tackled back against the couch. Suddenly Matt's lips were assaulting his own and his tongue demanded entrance to Shane's mouth. Recovering, Shane opened his mouth and let Matt in to explore. His arms encircled Matt's waist, hands busily learning all of the Hardy's curves and muscles. They made out like that for long minutes before Matt finally let him up for air.  
  
"What-," Shane began.  
  
Matt cut him off with another short, hard kiss.  
  
"So, all this time you thought I was straight?" Matt asked, laughter dancing in his eyes.  
  
Shane just shook his head and pulled Matt back down to his mouth.  
  
**********************************  
  
NOTE: Well, I HAD to get them together already. They were killing me, too. 


	10. Feel the heat!

Matt sat back against the couch gasping for air. Shane laughed and leaned against him, still running his hands along Matt's chest. Matt had just decided they were wearing too many clothes and pulled his t-shirt off. He reached for Shane's next, who allowed the removal without argument. Matt then pushed Shane down on the couch and raised himself on top of him, kissing Shane long and slow. Shane made a moaning sound in the back of his throat that was driving Matt crazy. He deepened the kiss. Shane's hands kept wandering. Matt was in heaven.  
  
"Not to put a damper on things, babe," Shane breathed softly. Matt suddenly felt an amazing shiver coarse down his spine at the endearment.  
  
"But?" he whispered into Shane's mouth, pecking the other man's lips with sweet little kisses.  
  
"But how long have you been keeping this little secret from me?" Shane smiled up at him before flipping them over and planting himself firmly on top of Matt, who was now blushing to the roots of his hair.  
  
"Um," Matt began, not able to look away from Shane's intense gaze.  
  
"Um?" Shane prompted with a suddenly possessive look. "It's not a trick question, Matty-boy. How long have you been into guys?"  
  
"Not into all guys," Matt said wrinkling his nose. "Just one."  
  
"Just one?" Shane said, breaking into the sexy grin that always sent tingles through Matt's body. "Only one? You never did anything with anyone else?"  
  
"Nope," Matt could feel his face flame. He felt like such a virgin, which technically he was. Not with the ladies, but definitely where it counted.  
  
"How long?" Shane was relentless.  
  
Matt sighed. He knew his friend would want to know all about Matt's feelings, but he was hoping not to have to tell him right away. It just made the older Hardy feel desperate. But he knew Shane wasn't going to let up on the conversation until they had it, so he decided to get it over with.  
  
"Since before you dated Billy," Matt murmured meekly looking to the side.  
  
"BEFORE?" Shane exclaimed, bringing Matt's chin back so he had to look Shane in the eyes. "Why didn't you talk to me? We ARE best friends, aren't we?"  
  
"Yeah," Matt said. "But I didn't know how to tell you without it sounding all whiny and desperate. And by the time I decided to talk to you, you were already dating Billy. And I didn't want you to start feeling weird around me."  
  
"So you just swallowed it?" Shane looked shocked. "All this time?"  
  
Matt nodded mutely and tried to look away again.  
  
"Oh no you don't," Shane shook his head. "You will NOT continue to avoid your feelings for me."  
  
"Like you should talk," Matt smiled smugly.  
  
"Good point," Shane grinned again. "I ain't NEVER avoiding my feelings for you again either."  
  
"Agreed," Matt whispered as Shane closed the distance between their mouths and they kissed on it.  
  
******************************  
  
Jeff toyed with his cell phone while staring at his bedroom ceiling. He wondered if Matt was getting anywhere with Shane right now. His brother had been gone a long time. He just hoped Matt's friendship with Shane withstood the strain it was currently under. Matt wouldn't be able to deal with losing Shane, Jeff knew. He'd apparently been in love with him for a long time. So in love, he'd lived through the heartache of watching from afar as Shane loved another man.  
  
Man, how hard must that have been? Jeff couldn't fathom it. He had a hard enough time dealing with watching Shannon date Crystal. But if Shannon were with another man, that would be the end of Jeff's mind. He knew he'd lose it. To know the love of your life rejects you for a woman is one thing. But if Shannon rejected him for another man, well Jeff didn't know what he'd do. But he knew it wouldn't be pretty.  
  
Of course, Jeff reasoned, if Shannon did have those inclinations, it would probably be Jeff's fault for taking advantage of him that night. He didn't know what came over him but they were getting so emotionally close that night and suddenly Jeff's control just vanished. He had looked down at Shannon after bouncing back onto the trampoline and the younger man just looked so breathtakingly tousled. Jeff had to have him. He had to. The next morning he was wracked with guilt. Shannon was so innocent and he just knew he'd taken some of that from him. He could barely look him in the eye in the light of morning.  
  
Jeff sighed. But that night was magical. It was the only night in his life he'd ever felt emotionally connected with anyone he'd slept with. He'd known for a while before it happened that Shannon was his soul mate. But if he didn't, that night cemented it. Thinking back he remembered how sweetly Shannon trembled as he came for Jeff. And how delicious he tasted. He also remembered that after Shannon's orgasm, the small blond, exhausted, still tried to protest that Jeff hadn't released. He remembered telling Shannon to sleep and pulling the smaller body into his arms. His cock twitched at the memory.  
  
God, it was hard for Jeff to get passed the guilt. He still dreamed of having Shannon like that again, but knew it wasn't meant to be. Jeff also knew he was doomed to live his life wanting Shannon, but never having him. At least Matt understood how he felt.  
  
******************************  
  
"Shaney, make love to me," Matt begged with deep chocolate brown eyes that etched their image into Shane's soul. How could he say no?  
  
"Are you sure?" he asked gently. "You've never done it before. I think it would help if we worked up to that slowly."  
  
"But I want you."  
  
"Sh-hh," Shane pressed his finger against Matt's lips. "I know. I want you, too. You don't even know how badly I want you. But I think we should start slowly."  
  
Matt's pout made Shane grin again. He would never get enough of Matt's cute expressions. Never. And never did he dream that Matt had felt the same way about him all the while. Damn, the time they wasted! No matter, Shane promised himself. They would make up for every bit of it!  
  
"How about I help you out there?" Shane smiled as he eased himself down Matt's body and unzipped the Hardy's black pants. Matt looked down in wonder and passion. Oh yeah, they would start making up for lost time right now.  
  
******************************  
  
Juvi smiled as Evan threw him onto the bed with a bit more force than usual. He liked it rough anyway, and Evan needed to let off some steam.  
  
"So, now we're both unemployed," Evan growled, throwing himself on top of the naked and writhing Juvi.  
  
"We can get a gig somewhere," Juvi soothed. "We're still marketable."  
  
"True," Evan conceded. He took Juvi's earlobe between his front teeth and bit down gently, tugging at it. Juvi let out a soft moan of pleasure and held Evan to his ear.  
  
"Maybe we should find another young rookie to corrupt for a while," Juvi suggested, undulating against Evan's hard on with his own stiff shaft.  
  
"Maybe," Evan groaned, biting lightly on his lover's neck. "Or maybe it's time we finally collected our golden prize."  
  
"Shannon?" Juvi sighed. Just the name sent his body into ecstasy. His movements sharpened and Evan drew in a sharp breath to keep control. He never liked to cum too quickly, preferring to reduce Juvi into a whimpering, begging mass first. Juvi didn't mind. But he liked it most when they had a third in their bed. That way Evan and Juvi could both feel the power of making someone beg for release. Juvi craved control once in a while. For Evan, it was vital.  
  
"Yes, Shannon," Evan purred, licking and biting his way down Juvi's neck and chest, to his caramel colored abdomen. Juvi writhed some more, urging Evan to continue. "How badly have you yearned for him, love?"  
  
"So badly," Juvi murmured, suddenly thinking of Shannon's sweet mouth. "So very badly."  
  
Evan continued toward the grand prize, Juvi's hard and throbbing cock. He breathed on it hotly, causing Juvi to groan in both pain and pleasure. Evan loved to tease him. Finally, Juvi felt the tip of Evan's tongue run up his shaft slowly. Agonizingly slow. Just the way the young Latino liked it.  
  
"Ye-e-sssss, mi amor," he hissed through gritted teeth. "More, por favore."  
  
"You want more, love?"  
  
"Yes, Evan," Juvi gasped. "Please?"  
  
"I'll give you more," Evan's voice was husky. "But I want you to put an image in your mind while I do it."  
  
"An image?" Juvi's mind was barely functioning. "Of what?"  
  
"An image of Shannon," Evan said, licking over the tip of Juvi's cock, which now leaked precum. "Think of him lying beneath you like this. Picture his face as you torture his cock."  
  
"Oh!"  
  
"Remember how sweet he tasted?"  
  
"Si!"  
  
"Remember how good he smelled?" Evan positioned his lips above Juvi's cock.  
  
"SI!"  
  
Evan slammed down on Juvi's cock and deep throated him. Juvi felt his heart kick into overdrive as he pictured what he would do to Shannon and felt Evan's mouth. The sensation built so fast he didn't have time to prepare himself and he suddenly came hard, screaming Shannon's name. The convulsions took him over and he blacked out from the force. He was completely unconscious while Evan smiled at him as he licked up the mess.  
  
******************************  
  
NOTE: Sorry it took a while to update! Please don't be mad. I hope this chapter is hot enough to make up for it! 


	11. Not you two psychos again!

Shannon sat back against the headboard in his hotel room with a bottle of Jack on the nightstand next to him. His body was still reeling from the sensation of being held tightly in Jeff's arms earlier that day. The lights were off and he sat in the darkness. He hadn't opened the bottle yet. It sat on the table, almost mocking him. His mind kept rewinding the scene with Jeff, interspersing it with memories from their night together long ago. He could feel the tears trying to push their way out of his eyes but he wouldn't allow himself to break down this time. He was going to learn to control himself, he decided. If he couldn't have Jeff, he shouldn't cry over it.  
  
A soft knock at the door interrupted his thoughts. He looked in its direction wondering who it could be. Most of his friends were in North Carolina right now and no one from his new company knew he was here yet. A sudden cold chill swept up his spine and put goose bumps on his arms. He made sure he was absolutely silent as he made his way to the door and peered into the peephole. The chill intensified as he saw Juvi standing on the other side.  
  
"I told you I didn't think he was here," he whispered to someone out of view, probably Evan. "The lights aren't even on and it's too early for him to be sleeping."  
  
"Then we'll just sit here until he gets back," Evan's disembodied voice whispered in reply. "I've been waiting on him for too long."  
  
Shannon crept back to the other side of the room and into the bathroom. He was quietly freaking out about his two stalkers following him to Ohio. Why won't they leave him alone? He shook as he wished he'd thought to bring the bottle in with him. But maybe this was better. It was hard enough to cope with his situation as it stood. Getting drunk would only make things worse for him. He slowly slid down the wall to the floor and wondered what the hell he was supposed to do now.  
  
**********************************  
  
Matt's hands were tangled in Shane's hair. Sugar had said it was too soon for them to make love, but he was giving Matt the most mind-blowing experience the older Hardy ever had. His tongue kept massaging Matt's shaft as he gently sucked and licked. Matt could feel the orgasm building. The last two times he'd felt the sensation Shane had eased back. Matt was hoping this time his new lover would bring him to completion. He whined and moaned, growling Shane's name.  
  
"That's right, babe," Shane's husky voice drawled out. "Let me know how much you want me."  
  
"Please, Shaney," Matt begged. "Oh, God, I want to cum."  
  
"Oh, you're going to come," Shane grinned up at him, momentarily releasing his cock.  
  
"When?" Matt groaned.  
  
"Right now," Shane replied, lowering his mouth back down onto Matt's shaft and sucking more forcefully on it.  
  
Matt bucked at first and tightened his grip in Shane's hair. The sensations that had been building up finally exploded and he could swear he actually saw stars as his body convulsed and he spilled his seed into Shane's waiting mouth. Shane was making purring sounds in his throat that vibrated through Matt's cock and intensified the orgasm. It took several long minutes before Matt realized he'd finished convulsing. His breath came in ragged gasps and he had trouble focusing his eyes. Suddenly he realized Sugar was back on top of him, looming over him actually with a concerned expression.  
  
"Are you okay, Matt?"  
  
"What happened to 'babe'?" Matt gasped out smiling.  
  
Shane grinned back. "That your new name then?"  
  
"Only for you to use," Matt replied, catching his breath. "That was amazing."  
  
"I'm glad you liked," Shane smiled, giving Matt a few short kisses before pulling back. "This is more than that, right?"  
  
"You know it is," Matt said as he reached up to finger comb Shane's hair back where it belonged. "If you still want me."  
  
"If I still want YOU?" Shane had the grace to look incredulous. "It's up to me then?"  
  
Matt nodded, biting his lip.  
  
"Then you ain't going nowhere, Matty-boy," Shane grinned again. "You're mine."  
  
Matt's heart did a double flip. He'd been worried Shane had changed his mind. Thank God he hadn't because Matt couldn't back to the way things were now. He put on his famous Matt Hardy smirk and pulled his Sugar down for another long kiss.  
  
"I think I love you, Shane," he whispered as they broke apart.  
  
"You THINK?" Shane pouted. "Let me help you figure it out for sure."  
  
He leaned in again when his cell phone rang, breaking the silence. Matt's pout returned as he thought Shane would break the cuddling to answer it.  
  
"Let it ring," Shane smirked and leaned in again. Matt sighed happily into his mouth.  
  
**********************************  
  
"Come on, answer," Shannon whispered frantically into the phone. Shane's voicemail kicked on and Shannon severed the connection in frustration.  
  
He was hoping Shane would know how to get him out of this mess. He'd been hiding silently in his room for over an hour now but Juvi and Evan were still there. Shannon could hear them whispering to each other when he'd crept back toward the door a few minutes ago to check it. They were serious about waiting for him and Shannon knew they weren't interested in hearing the word 'no'.  
  
His cell phone suddenly vibrated with an incoming call and Shannon checked the caller ID. Praying it was Shane. It wasn't. Sighing, he clicked it on, knowing he had no choice now but to appeal to the person on the other end for help.  
  
"Shan?" Jeff said when the blond clicked it on. "You get in okay?"  
  
"Yeah, Jeff," Shannon whispered.  
  
"Why are you whispering?"  
  
"I . . ." Shannon was so afraid of finally telling Jeff. He knew everything would come out now, but he didn't see as he had a choice anymore. Sniffling, he collected himself. "I need help."  
  
"What happened?" Jeff demanded. Shannon knew his friend was now on instant alert. He heard as Jeff jangled his keys and ran out of his house, slamming the door behind him. Shannon heard another slam that sounded like a car door and then Jeff started an engine.  
  
"Jeff, where are you going?"  
  
"To the airport," Jeff grunted back. "Now tell me what happened."  
  
"I haven't even told you yet and you're already leaving to come help me?"  
  
"Yes, baby," said Jeff distractedly. "Now talk."  
  
Shannon's heart began to pick up speed. "Baby" again. Jeff had called him that this morning, but Shannon hadn't dared believe he'd meant it. But he couldn't just explain it away when it happened twice in one day, could he? Shannon wanted to believe, but he was so scared. Scared of Juvi and Evan. Scared that he was reading too much into things.  
  
"Shannon, baby," Jeff growled again. "Stay with me here. Tell me what happened."  
  
Stay with you? Shannon thought quietly. Just ask me, Jeff, and I'll never leave you.  
  
"They're here," Shannon sighed in a whisper. "They're here and I don't think they're going away. I tried to call Shane, but he didn't answer."  
  
"THEM them?" Jeff grunted.  
  
"Yeah," Shannon said, knowing his best friend understood who he meant.  
  
"You should have called ME first," Jeff replied. "From now on you always call me first."  
  
"Okay, Jeff," Shannon smiled. "But what do I do now?"  
  
"You stay put where you are," Jeff instructed. "Don't you go out there. Don't make a sound until I get there. I'll take care of it."  
  
"Why?" Shannon finally asked, not sure if Jeff would give him an answer. There was at least a full minute of silence before Jeff answered.  
  
"We both know why," Jeff said. "I'm sorry if this makes you uncomfortable, but honestly, right now I can't care about that. When this is over, we can talk about it if you want to. Or we can leave it like you wanted to the last time."  
  
"Like I wanted to?" Shannon hissed, wanting to yell but knowing he would give his presence away if he did. "I don't know what memory YOU'RE talking about, but the bottle of Jack on my nightstand says I didn't want to drop a damned thing."  
  
Jeff was silent for another minute while Shannon sat seething and listened to him park his car then slam the door shut as he apparently exited the vehicle. Then he listened while Jeff rushed in and bought a ticket for the next flight out to where Shannon was. After that the younger Hardy brother finally got back on the phone.  
  
"Shannon, if you're saying what I think you're saying, you'd better be damned sure about it," he said in a dark, serious voice meant to allow no argument. "Because once you cross that line I ain't NEVER letting you go. Ever."  
  
"Possessive words for someone who's been ignoring what we shared all those years ago."  
  
"I ain't going to apologize for that night, either," Jeff hissed back. "I felt guilty for years afterwards for losing control and pushing myself on you when I knew you were straight."  
  
"I ain't never been straight, Jeff," Shannon grunted. "You should have asked."  
  
"I'm past asking," Jeff shot back. "I want you."  
  
Shannon then heard the loudspeaker blare into the phone that Jeff's plane was ready to board. "Well then," he said as he heard Jeff shift, probably getting up from his chair. "Come get me."  
  
**********************************  
  
NOTE: I was going to draw this out for another couple of chapters when my "Jeff muse" came dancing out and whacked me on the head. 


	12. Shannon's hero

Jeff jumped out of the cab before it even came to a full stop, threw a few bills over the seat and slammed the door, taking off for the desk at a full run. The driver just shook his head as he pulled away. Who would argue with a 100% tip? When Jeff got to the front desk, he had to catch his breath before he could ask for Shannon's room.  
  
"Are you Mr. Hardy?" the young girl behind the counter asked.  
  
"Can you just tell me what room he's in?" Jeff was afraid she was going to ask for an autograph and he didn't have time now.  
  
"Mr. Moore called down and said to give a Mr. Hardy a key to his room. He said you were expected," she explained. "If you're Mr. Hardy, that is."  
  
Jeff pulled out his wallet and flipped to his driver's license. She glanced at it with a serious expression then nodded and handed Jeff a card key to room 712. He thanked her and ran up to the elevator, pushing the button ten times. It had been over two hours since he spoke to Shannon and he was afraid that something had happened. He hoped the blond had followed Jeff's orders and stayed silently inside. At last, the elevator doors opened and Jeff jumped inside, scaring the occupant, a small, elderly lady who was trying to get out. He smiled at her confused expression as she exited and the doors closed.  
  
*******************************  
  
"Let's just break in," Evan said as he watched Juvi catch another M&M with his tongue after throwing it in the air. The action was getting to him and he was hard as a rock. He was also impatient as hell. Where was Shannon?  
  
"What if someone hears us?" Juvi argued. "We'll get kicked out and maybe even arrested."  
  
"Well, I was hoping you and I could play while we wait," Evan coaxed in a silky voice he knew Juvi loved to hear.  
  
"As tempting as that sounds, mi amor," Juvi grinned back sexily, "if Shannon should hear us, and we know I'm a screamer, he'll never enter the room and we won't get him."  
  
"Well, if he gets off that elevator and sees us, he probably won't enter the room either," Evan reasoned. "And we don't want him to get away from us again do we?"  
  
"No, we don't," Juvi's eyes darkened even more than their natural dark state. "We've BOTH waited for him for too long."  
  
"How about if we quietly break in and wait for him there?"  
  
"If we could do it quietly, I guess that would be okay," Juvi agreed. "I want him so badly, Evan."  
  
"I know you do, sweet," Evan smiled as he pulled something that looked like a credit card from his wallet.  
  
"No, HE is the sweet," Juvi growled. "I'm definitely not in a sweet mood tonight."  
  
"And just think," Evan pointed out as he inserted the card into the lock and waited for it to click open. "Helms is hours away from here and won't be interrupting us this time."  
  
"Where did you get that thing?" Juvi asked.  
  
"Picked it up in a neat little spy store in L.A.," Evan smiled. "I knew we'd be needing it someday."  
  
The door clicked open and they entered the dark room.  
  
"Nirvana!" Juvi sighed, rolling around on the bed. "Evan! It smells like him!"  
  
Evan smiled and watched his lover push his face into the pillow. He looked up and noticed the bathroom door was closed. That was strange. He walked over to it and turned the knob. Locked. A slow smile spread itself across his lips as he looked over to Juvi who watched him curiously. He motioned to the door and mouthed, "He must be in there." Juvi smiled widely and rose from the bed.  
  
"Shannon," Evan called through the door. "We know you're in there. You might as well come out."  
  
"Yeah," Juvi added. "We don't want to hurt you. Come on out and see us."  
  
There was no sound from within, but the locked door gave every indication their new play toy was inside.  
  
"Shannon, you'd better come out, or things won't be good for Jeff," Evan tried. Juvi put an ear to the door and nodded happily.  
  
"He gasped," he said to Evan. "He's in there."  
  
"You mentioned Jeff a couple of times that night," Evan went on. "Do you remember?"  
  
"Leave me alone," Shannon called weakly from behind the locked door. "Just get the hell out of here."  
  
"Oh, we can't do that," Juvi purred. "We've been so lonely without you."  
  
"Just get the hell out of here," Shannon repeated. "Shane ain't going to like this."  
  
"You're not dating Helms," Evan said confidently. "He would never allow you to travel alone if you were. Now, if you don't cooperate, we're going to tell Jeffy Weffy all about your true feelings. How long do you think you'll be friends then, baby?"  
  
"NOBODY calls him 'baby' but ME," Jeff said from the doorway. Evan snapped his head around in shock.  
  
*******************************  
  
"So, Evan, you're stalker number two, then?" Jeff sneered with a rage he didn't even know he could feel. "And, you, Juvi. The name that begins with a 'J'. Good. Now that you're both conveniently here, I can kick both your asses at once."  
  
"Pretty confident about this handicap match, Hardy boy," Evan replied with a cool expression. Juvi flexed his muscles beside him and smirked. "Ten bucks says we'll take you down and have Shannon AND you tonight."  
  
"Who said anything about a handicap match?" Shannon hissed softly from the now-opened bathroom door.  
  
Juvi turned in surprise and Shannon grabbed him by the hair and rammed his face into the wall. Before Evan could react, Jeff had him by the back of the shirt and executed a perfect reverse DDT into the floor. Carpeting or no Evan was knocked silly, Jeff could see with satisfaction. He looked up in time to witness Shannon's bare foot connect with Juvi's jaw, laying him out on his back. They locked green eyes and grinned at each other.  
  
"Let's call the cops," Jeff said.  
  
"My career would be history," Shannon answered, shaking his head.  
  
"They're going to keep coming," Jeff insisted.  
  
"No they won't," Shannon replied, dragging Juvi to the door by the arm. "I got a few new connections of my own coming in tomorrow morning. I'll explain a bit about what's happened and they'll have my back from now on."  
  
"You'd better be sure," Jeff said, picking up a moaning Evan and throwing him roughly over his shoulder. "I ain't going to tolerate this again from them."  
  
They deposited their charges in the elevator and pressed the lobby button, sending them down in a heap on the elevator floor. When they returned to Shannon's room, they turned to each other awkwardly. Jeff couldn't deny his feelings anymore and he knew he couldn't give Shannon up. He also knew he had to set things straight between them now. He just wasn't sure how Shannon was going to react.  
  
*******************************  
  
He's changed his mind, Shannon glumly. He's going to leave things again. Shannon sighed in resignation and slumped down onto the bed. At least he had a fresh bottle to drown his sorrows in this time.  
  
"What's wrong?" Jeff asked curiously, settling down next to Shannon. "They're gone, but we could still call the cops."  
  
"No, not that," Shannon waved the thought away. "You look like you have to say something you don't think I'll like and I think I might know what it is."  
  
"Oh really?" Jeff asked. "What am I going to say?"  
  
"Never mind," Shannon sighed again sadly. Why couldn't Jeff just say it and get it over with? Shannon was already fighting back the tears that threatened to spill. "Want some Jack?" he offered, picking the bottle up off the nightstand and breaking the seal.  
  
"No," Jeff said, taking the bottle. "No drinking this time."  
  
"Just get on with it, then," Shannon muttered.  
  
"Not until you tell me what you think I'm going to say," Jeff said stubbornly crossing his arms over his chest.  
  
Shannon just shook his head and looked down.  
  
"How long have we known each other?" Jeff asked.  
  
Shannon shrugged, unwilling to look up.  
  
"A long time," Jeff went on. "A real long time."  
  
Shannon shrugged again. Suddenly Jeff gently but forcefully lifted Shannon's chin so he had to look at him. Shannon was caught in one of Jeff's most intense stares. He felt trapped in those green eyes. Pulled into their depths. It was why he was avoiding Jeff's gaze before. Because when Jeff had him vulnerable like this, he could get Shannon to tell him anything.  
  
"I've loved you for every bit as long as I've known you," Jeff confessed softly, still holding Shannon's chin, and eyes. "The only question is how long have you loved me?"  
  
Shannon began to tremble slightly as he stared back mutely.  
  
"Shannon, you can't hide from me anymore, baby," Jeff said leaning in slowly. "I can read you plainly now. I've probably been needing to do that for a long time, but I'm doing it now. How long?" He stopped just a fraction of an inch from Shannon's lips and waited.  
  
"Before that night," Shannon stammered out. "Long before."  
  
Jeff smiled as he captured Shannon's lips in a hot, possessive kiss that left the small gasping blond no doubt as to his feelings.  
  
"You just crossed the point of no return," Jeff whispered, lowering them both back on the bed and pushing himself on top of Shannon's shaking body. "Tonight I'M claiming you, baby. Forever."  
  
Shannon smiled as Jeff leaned in to once again capture his lips. His thoughts slowly jumbled as Jeff nearly tore his and Shannon's clothes off.  
  
"I would be gentle, but I can't seem to control myself," he said apologetically.  
  
"Some things never change," Shannon replied with a smile.  
  
Jeff smiled again and fastened his hot mouth onto Shannon's nipple. The blond moaned happily and ran his fingers through his lover's purple and blue hair.  
  
"Ah, that feels so good," he sighed.  
  
Jeff's only response was to shift to the other nipple, licking and nipping at it hungrily. A deep growl seemed to come from his throat that sent a shiver down Shannon's back. Jeff worked his way down Shannon's chest, to his belly button and stopped. Shannon remembered how this played out the first time and looked down.  
  
"Say my name," Jeff ordered quietly.  
  
"You know who you are," Shannon shot back with a smile.  
  
"I want to make sure YOU know who I am," Jeff growled. "Say it."  
  
"Jeff," Shannon purred. "It's always been you. Even that night they hurt me, it was you."  
  
Jeff's eyebrow went up in confusion.  
  
"They said I called your name that night," Shannon explained breathlessly. "It's always been you, Jeff. Just you."  
  
Jeff grinned wolfishly just like that night he shared with Shannon.  
  
"You look like the big bad wolf when you do that, you know," Shannon grinned.  
  
"The better to eat you with," Jeff replied and deep throated Shannon so suddenly, the blond grabbed at the sheets and arched his back. Jeff wouldn't let up, bringing Shannon to a screaming orgasm with minutes.  
  
Shannon couldn't regain his breath and just gulped air as Jeff got up from the bed, came back a minute later and positioned himself above the blond holding a bottle of baby oil he'd apparently retrieved from the bathroom.  
  
"Don't pass out on me, baby," he grinned down at Shannon. "It's not over yet."  
  
Shannon smiled and pulled Jeff down into a deep kiss, loving the taste of himself on his lover's lips.  
  
*******************************  
  
NOTE: No, I'm not done with their first time yet. Tune in again, dear reviewers! 


	13. MINE!

"Shaney, it's not too soon," Matt whined from beneath the covers of Shane's bed.  
  
Shane laughed to himself and pulled Matt closer, spooning him from behind. He'd created a monster, he could see. Matt wasn't going to let up until Shane made love to him. He'd done everything he could do to tire the Hardy out (i.e. as many oral orgasms as one could accomplish in a two-hour time period), but it was no use. And Shane had to admit that part of him wasn't going to rest easily until he was inside his new lover. It was a possessive- thing, Shane knew, but he couldn't help it. He'd loved Matt from afar for too long and now that he had him, he wanted to, well HAVE him.  
  
"I just want to start this relationship right, babe," he punctuated this with a kiss to the back of Matt's head.  
  
"It is started right," Matt argued. "Started means it's right."  
  
Shane laughed out loud at this comment. Matt was never really known to be patient, despite his in-ring character. Though Shane still couldn't stand him, he acknowledged that Jeff was really the more patient of the two Hardy boys. He shook his head slightly and wrapped both arms around Matt's waist.  
  
"I agree," he said close to Matt's ear, getting a kick out of the shiver it sent down Matt's back. "But I want to be positive it stays right."  
  
Matt was quiet for a moment before turning in Shane's arms to look into his eyes. Shane had to stifle the initial gasp he felt like letting out, awed by his lover's beauty and the love that was filling him for Matt right now. He never thought feelings could be this strong.  
  
"I'm not going to change my mind, Shane," Matt whispered. "I love you. I have loved you for years. I won't leave you unless you want me to."  
  
"I will NEVER want you to, Matty-boy," Shane replied with watering eyes. "I just have to get used to finally having you after living without you for so long."  
  
"I know how you feel," Matt sighed, moving closer to Shane. "Trust me, I know."  
  
"I love you, Matt," Shane said very seriously, realizing he'd only now said those words for the first time.  
  
He could see relief finally cross Matt's features. So that's it, he thought. Matt was afraid he wasn't loved. Well that was a mistake Shane wouldn't make again. Matt wanted to feel loved? No problem. Shane would make sure Matt felt loved like he'd never felt it before. And like he never would again from anyone else. Shane suddenly felt his Alpha-male side surface with determination. A possessive feeling overtook him as he pushed Matt onto his back and laid his body on top of him.  
  
"Yes, I do love you, baby," he said in a smooth, silky tone meant to ease Matt's fears and relax him. "I'm sorry I didn't say the words before, but you'll be hearing them from now on." He kissed Matt deeply and explored the recesses of his mouth with his own tongue. "You really want me to make love to you?"  
  
Matt nodded silently gazing up at Shane in wonder and joy. Shane grinned down at him with happiness.  
  
"You know what this means, right?" he wanted to be sure there were no miscommunications before this happened. He didn't think he could stand to lose his baby now.  
  
Matt swallowed before speaking. "It means we're together?" he ventured in a hoarse, passion-filled voice.  
  
"Yes, it does," Shane nodded approvingly. "It also means we've made a commitment to each other."  
  
"A commitment?" Matt asked hopefully.  
  
"Yes, a commitment," Shane nodded again. "I can't lose you now, baby. I just can't."  
  
"You won't," Matt insisted. "I can't lose you either."  
  
"Well then," Shane smiled without breaking eye contact, reaching into his nightstand drawer for the KY tube he'd put there for his near-nightly Matt fantasies. "I guess it's past time I made you my own."  
  
Matt smiled and reached up for him eagerly.  
  
**********************************  
  
Jeff couldn't get enough of kissing Shannon. He ran his tongue along the blond's teeth and over his tongue heatedly. Shannon was whimpering and pawing at Jeff, trying to get closer. The younger Hardy brother wasn't about to complain. Now that things were settled, he needed to make Shannon his immediately. It was an urgency he'd always sensed whenever he and Shannon were together, but never was it as strong as it was now.  
  
Jeff had never considered himself to be particularly dominant, but his need to have Shannon was proving him to be extremely possessive. Maybe it was the thought that Evan and Juvi could have taken Shannon from him before he could confess his feelings. Maybe it was the fact that he finally had the love of his lifetime in his arms, ready and willing to let Jeff make the relationship a reality. Jeff didn't know for sure. All he did know was that the blond writhing and clinging to him now was about to become his and quite permanently. He wondered if anyone else ever felt this strongly about his love. Probably, but not likely anyone he knew, anyway. He broke the kiss and looked into Shannon's panting face.  
  
"I need to be sure you know exactly what's going to happen before I do anything, baby," he said in a dark, dangerous tone.  
  
Shannon nodded and Jeff kissed his forehead before continuing.  
  
"I'm going to make love to you now," he said, capturing Shannon's eyes again and holding the gaze. Shannon's eyes widened and flashed with desire. "That's right, baby, I'm making you mine."  
  
"Yes," Shannon whispered.  
  
"Mine," Jeff repeated. "I won't share you with anyone, not even Crystal."  
  
Shannon squirmed a bit at the mention of his girlfriend's name.  
  
Jeff's heart lurched in pain. Shannon didn't look like he was willing to give her up. "Sorry, if you didn't."  
  
Shannon cut him off by pulling him down for a quick kiss. "I broke up with her a while back. I just haven't had a chance to tell you."  
  
"You broke up with her?" Jeff's heart leaped with joy. "When? Why?"  
  
"About a month ago," Shannon replied shyly, looking away. "Because when you started chasing me with those questions, I couldn't get you out of my mind. And I couldn't keep doing that to her."  
  
"You never loved her?" the younger Hardy asked in awe. "All these years?"  
  
"All these years I only loved you, Jeff," Shannon said, looking back up to Jeff's gaze. "She was just a distraction."  
  
"Why didn't we ever talk about this before?" Jeff sighed. "We could have saved so much wasted time."  
  
"I just thought you'd made your decision and this was the only way I could have you in my life," Shannon said softly. "It was better than losing you altogether."  
  
"And I thought I had taken advantage of you," Jeff confessed. "But we're going to make up for lost time now, right?"  
  
Shannon nodded eagerly and Jeff smiled again.  
  
"I love you, baby," he said into Shannon's neck as he kissed and nibbled on the blond.  
  
"I love you, too, Jeff," Shannon gasped as Jeff took a firm yet gentle grip on his earlobe with his teeth.  
  
"I think we've done enough teasing," Jeff finally said sitting up and opening the bottle of baby oil. Shannon watched in fascination as Jeff coated two fingers and put the bottle on the nightstand. He then spread the blond's legs and slowly pushed one finger into Shannon's waiting orifice. Shannon closed his eyes, apparently trying to relax himself. Jeff watched his lover carefully, making sure he didn't hurt him while he stretched him.  
  
"Am I your first male lover?" he asked.  
  
Shannon nodded in silence.  
  
"There was no one else you wanted?"  
  
"I only wanted you," Shannon said between gritted teeth. Jeff eased back a little. "I dated another guy for a while, but I wouldn't have slept with him."  
  
A wave of jealousy passed through Jeff at the thought, but he knew he could only blame himself. He also had no right to be angry, he admitted to himself, as he had been with a male lover in the past to try to exorcise his feelings for Shannon. A thought struck him. He knew he would have to remain calm so as not to scare Shannon, but he needed an answer.  
  
"One of them?" he asked quietly in a deceptively calm voice.  
  
Shannon opened his eyes and looked at Jeff with shame written on his sweet face. He nodded guiltily and looked away. Jeff didn't stop his movements as he used his other hand to bring the blond's gaze back  
  
"It's all right, baby," he said firmly, adding another finger to his lover's stretching hole. "It doesn't change how I feel. It doesn't change what's going to happen."  
  
Shannon's eyes widened again and he smiled gratefully up at Jeff.  
  
"I'll never let you go now," Jeff assured him, removing his fingers and moving into position on top of Shannon. He wanted to watch his lover's eyes the first time they made love. He slowly slid into Shannon's trembling body and sighed with ecstasy. The young blond was so tight and hot, Jeff only hoped he could make their first time together last. "You're all mine now, baby," he growled into Shannon's ear.  
  
"Yours," Shannon whispered back, locking his legs around Jeff's lean waist.  
  
"That's right, you're mine," Jeff said again. He repeated it over and over again as he set a slow sensual rhythm. "You're mine. All mine."  
  
Shannon's moans soon became muffled and Jeff reached between them to stroke the blond's hard shaft. Shannon writhed some more and pushed into Jeff's hand. The younger Hardy felt his own control quickly depleting as the blond moved more and more quickly. He felt his younger lover tense and cum all over his hand growling his name. Jeff grinned in satisfaction then his own release overtook him and he shouted Shannon's name in return. He collapsed on top of the sated young blond and sighed with happiness. Shannon was finally his.  
  
**********************************  
  
Matt felt Shane pull his fingers out slowly and groaned at the loss. He was beyond coherence, though, when Shane slowly pushed himself inside of him. Sweet heaven, he thought as Shane filled him completely. The tension inside of him unfurled as his cock jumped with the sensation of his lover's cock hitting his prostate. He looked up at Shane uncertainly, hoping he wasn't disappointing his lover.  
  
Matt was blown away with what he saw. Shane gazed down on him possessively with an intent look in his eyes that conveyed all he needed Matt to know. But he spoke anyway.  
  
"This is it, baby," he rasped out. "You belong to me now."  
  
Matt nodded mutely, reaching up to touch Shane's face.  
  
"I love you, Matty," Shane continued. "I always loved you."  
  
Matt nodded again pulling Shane down for a hot kiss that sealed their bond. Shane kept his mouth fastened onto Matt's as he stepped up the pace and began caressing Matt's neglected cock. Matt moaned into Shane's mouth. His lover wouldn't let go of his mouth. The sensations were too much and Matt screamed his release into his lover's mouth. Shane immediately went over the edge right behind him. When they finally broke their kiss, Matt again gulped air and stared up at Shane in wonder. Shane, panting himself, grinned back down again sexily.  
  
"I love you, too, Sugar," Matt finally said.  
  
"That's MY baby," Shane whispered and kissed him long and slow.  
  
**********************************  
  
NOTE: Does anyone else need a cigarette? 


	14. Confrontations

Jeff left Shannon the next morning to return to North Carolina and prepare for his own traveling for the week. But not before he made love to him a few more times to make sure that Shannon knew their relationship was very real and permanent. Shannon told Jeff another dozen times how much he loved him, but the younger Hardy would never get tired of hearing it. He'd waited and dreamt about it for a long time. It was better to listen to than any music he could think of.  
  
When he finally got home to his father's house, where he and Matt always met before a trip, he noticed Shane's car in the driveway. Hmm. Peculiar. It was pretty early in the morning. Maybe Matt had offered to take Shane traveling with them on his first WWF trip.  
  
He hoped Matt hadn't put Shane through too much. Now that Jeff had solved the case and saved the damsel . . . um . . . guy in distress, he would feel terrible if his brother's friendship was damaged. He ran up the steps and into the house excitedly, stopping short in shock. There Matt stood, pressed up against the wall by Shane who was kissing him passionately, neither man having heard Jeff's entrance. It took the younger Hardy boy a minute to recover before clearing his throat pointedly. Matt and Shane broke apart and looked at Jeff in surprise.  
  
"Oh, you think YOU'RE surprised?" Jeff grinned.  
  
Shane glared at him in his usual manner, but Jeff chose to ignore him and focus on his brother.  
  
"Where were you?" Matt asked in irritation. "I've been trying to call you since last night.  
  
"You didn't try my cell," Jeff pointed out holding up the offending device in his palm. "You would have reached me. Eventually."  
  
"That doesn't tell him where you were," Shane said softly.  
  
"You're his keeper now?" Jeff asked snidely, turning to his nemesis.  
  
"Among other things."  
  
"That's enough," Matt said wearily. He turned back to Jeff. "I don't have to explain myself to you. He's my boyfriend now and that's that."  
  
"Now and forever," Shane added, smiling at Jeff in cool satisfaction.  
  
Jeff crossed his arms over his chest in defiance. He wanted his brother to be happy and had even encouraged him on a number of occasions to tell Shane how he felt. But that didn't mean the two of them had to like each other. Well, Jeff would wipe that smirk right off Shane's face. In fact, he'd do it right now.  
  
"Interesting," Jeff said. He looked at Matt's apprehensive expression and softened. "I'm very happy for you, bro. I told you that you should have told him before."  
  
Matt nodded.  
  
"I have a surprise of my own," Jeff went on calmly. "I just got back from Ohio."  
  
Shane's features took on a thunderous expression but he remained quiet, waiting expectantly for Jeff to continue.  
  
"Shannon sends his regards, by the way," Jeff said.  
  
"What the hell are you blathering on about?" Shane seethed.  
  
"You miss a call yesterday, Sugar-boy?"  
  
Shane flushed and Matt looked between his brother and best friend/lover in confusion. Jeff remained silent for a few minutes, leaving Shane to stew in his ire.  
  
"You explaining yourself anytime soon, little bro?" Matt asked, now looking as pissed as Shane.  
  
"Shan told me he was hiding from his stalkers when I called yesterday to make sure he got in okay," Jeff replied, his rage from the previous evening slowly returning. He fixed a stony gaze on Shane and addressed him directly. "He told me you weren't answering your cell and he was trapped in his room. He didn't know what to do and he was scared out of his mind."  
  
"Evan."  
  
"Yeah, Evan," Jeff growled. "And his little bitch, Juvi, too. I flew out there and took their asses apart. With a little help from my baby, that is."  
  
"Your WHAT?!" Shane shrieked.  
  
"My baby," Jeff replied. "I finally told Shannon how I feel."  
  
"You did?" Matt brightened. "That's good, right?"  
  
"For me it is," Jeff said not taking his eyes off Shane. "For your boy here, it ain't."  
  
"Why not?" Matt asked. Shane just stood near Matt in icy silence.  
  
"I'll be spending more time with his 'baby brother' now, that's why," the younger Hardy returned. "Which means more for Shane here to worry about, seeing as I'm such a bad influence and all."  
  
"You are," Shane said coldly.  
  
"I know why you hate me now, Shaney-boy," Jeff replied. "And you only got half the story. I couldn't care any less about how you feel about me, but seeing as you're now together with my brother, and I DO care how he feels, I think you and I got some talking to do."  
  
"But we got to leave soon," Matt interrupted.  
  
"You still have to pack, don't you?" Jeff asked, turning to Matt's worried expression. He hated making his brother worry, but he needed to get things right, or at least get them cordial, with Shane. He wanted no he needed for Matt to be happy finally.  
  
"Yeah," Matt said uncertainly.  
  
"We'll only be gone for a little while," Jeff reasoned. "The plane doesn't even leave for over three hours."  
  
"But what about your packing?" Matt tried.  
  
"You know I packed yesterday morning, like always," Jeff grinned, turning back to Shane. "Feel like breakfast?"  
  
"Not really, but I guess we do need to clear the air," Shane grunted, kissed Matt on the cheek and led the way outside.  
  
"Jeff," Matt called as Jeff headed to the door. "Please."  
  
"Don't worry, bro," he smiled pushing the screen door open. "I'm doing this for you, not to hurt him."  
  
*********************************  
  
Shane took a seat in the booth at Denny's and accepted his menu. He glanced up at Jeff once but then busied himself choosing an omelet. Then the waitress took their order, and they stared at each other quietly while she fetched Jeff's orange juice and Shane's coffee. When she then left to wait on another table, Jeff broke the silence.  
  
"I know you hate that Shannon's with me now."  
  
Shane rolled his eyes and glanced to the side. Hell yes he hated that his 'little brother' chose to get romantically involved with Matt's fly-by- night brother. Jeff had hurt Shannon more than anyone else in his young life and Shane didn't want to see it happen again. Why the hell didn't the blond just marry Crystal anyway? She's a nice girl. He guessed that was the problem, he sighed. She was a girl and Shannon was in love with a man. He hated that Shannon had chosen this particular man to love, too. Sighing again, he returned his eyes to the expectant Hardy before him.  
  
"What do you want me to say?" he griped. "You already know what I think."  
  
"I want you to listen," Jeff said calmly.  
  
"I am listening."  
  
"No, you're hearing," Jeff explained. "I want you to listen to me. Shannon and I talked a long time last night."  
  
"I'll bet you did more than that."  
  
"Maybe you'd know a thing or two about that, considering how I saw you with my brother earlier," Jeff said in an identically icy tone.  
  
"Touché," Shane said after a moment of silence.  
  
"Look, I do know a little something about psychology," Jeff replied.  
  
"Now you're going to psychoanalyze me?" Shane asked askance. "Oh, no you don't."  
  
"Oh, yes I do," Jeff countered, then waited for the returning waitress to deliver their food before continuing. When she disappeared again, he turned back to his fuming adversary. "I'm psychoanalyzing all of us."  
  
"Who all of us?" Shane demanded, forking up some omelet and shoveling it into his mouth. He really wasn't hungry but the food kept him from choking the life out of his lover's brother.  
  
"The four of us," Jeff replied with a smile, cutting into his pancake stack. "You and I are both alphas."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Alpha males," Jeff explained. "We're both 'take charge, defend our babies' kind of guys. Now Matt and Shannon, they're not like that."  
  
"Your brother isn't a pussy, and neither is mine," Shane growled around another bite.  
  
"I know that," Jeff frowned. "But they're more the 'try to keep things peaceful' kind of men."  
  
"Okay," Shane nodded. "I'll go with that. What does it have to do with you and me not getting along?"  
  
"A lot," Jeff sighed. "We're both trying to protect those two from each other. Each other as in me and you."  
  
"This is ridiculous," Shane groaned. "I don't like you because you hurt Shannon. He did tell you, right?"  
  
"Yes, but you've got the story wrong," Jeff answered. "He had it wrong, too. You both thought I left him alone all these years because I didn't want him. You didn't even consider that I thought I had forced myself on a straight guy and hurt him by what I did."  
  
Shane froze. That couldn't be true, could it?  
  
"You can ask Matt."  
  
"You TOLD Matt?" Shane's eyes went wide as saucers.  
  
"Not about that night," Jeff admitted quietly. But he's known about my feelings for Shannon for at least a year. And I've loved him since I met him."  
  
Shane looked at Jeff. Really looked at him for the first time. His eyes bore the tired truth in them and had he looked before he might have realized it and told Shannon, instead of pushing the blond away from Jeff. Damn.  
  
"You really do love him, don't you?" he asked.  
  
Jeff just nodded quietly from his seat, not bothering to look away. Shane knew the younger Hardy was trying to mend fences for his brother's sake, but he couldn't deny that everything Jeff pointed out had been true. They were both very protective and possessive of those they loved, and they both loved each other's brothers. A real fine mess, he smiled wryly.  
  
"Well, I really do love Matt," he confided.  
  
"I figured that," Jeff responded dryly. "If I'd known, I would have told you Matt returned your feelings. Even if we have problems, that don't mean they should suffer for them."  
  
"You would have done that for us?" Shane asked.  
  
Jeff nodded again.  
  
"But I don't think I would have done that for you."  
  
"Like I said," Jeff replied. "You only had half the story to work with."  
  
Shane gave Jeff a friendly smile for the first time in years. The younger Hardy wasn't as much of a slouch as he'd thought. He still needed to clarify something though.  
  
"If you ever hurt Shannon again, though," Shane began in a dangerous tone, "accidentally or not, I'll . . ."  
  
"Do the same thing I'll do to you if you hurt my brother?" Jeff ventured with a predatory grin. "I wouldn't have it any other way."  
  
*********************************  
  
NOTE: MANY thanks for all of the glorious reviews you've been showering upon this story! I am so proud of its success. And most especially thanks to Hearts Desire, who has a list of favorite pairings in her bio. I'm going to use it for future inspiration!  
  
HD's list: Shannon Moore/Raven  
  
Shannon Moore / Jeff Hardy  
  
Shannon Moore / Matt Hardy  
  
Shannon Moore / Shane Helms  
  
Shannon Moore / Stevie Richards  
  
Shannon Moore / Kevin Nash  
  
Shannon Moore / Triple H  
  
Shannon Moore / Undertaker  
  
Shannon Moore / Billy Gunn  
  
Shannon Moore / Scott Hall  
  
Shannon Moore / Rhyno  
  
Shannon Moore / Edge  
  
Shannon Moore / Christian  
  
Shannon Moore / RVD  
  
Shannon Moore / Bradshaw  
  
Shannon Moore / Jericho  
  
Shannon Moore / Victoria  
  
Bubba Ray / undecided  
  
Christian / Edge  
  
Jeff Hardy / Matt Hardy  
  
RVD / Kane  
  
Victoria / Stevie  
  
Jamie Noble / Nidia 


	15. Shannon's still wanted

Things settled into a routine of sorts after a while. Shane was entertaining crowds as the Alliance's superhero (and then WWE's) Hurricane, stealing Molly Holly from the heartbroken Spike Dudley to become his super- heroine sidekick, Mighty Molly. Matt and Jeff continued to tag as Team Extreme, with their old pal and Matt's onscreen girlfriend, Lita. Then the roster split into Smackdown and Raw, which was good for the mid-card wrestlers, as they would now have a better chance for airtime.  
  
Matt and Shane's relationship grew more serious as time progressed, as did Jeff and Shannon's. The guys in Shannon's Ohio Valley Wrestling federation were as helpful as he'd told Jeff they would be. Evan and Juvi tried to get to Shannon one more time when Jeff and Shane were both on the road, but Jamie Noble and John Cena took them out when they heard Shannon arguing with them loudly in the hotel hallway. Cena was no cruiserweight, either, so they quickly learned that they wouldn't have a chance at Shannon again while he was around.  
  
Some long months later Shannon was finally called back from OVW, along with Jamie and John. Unfortunately, he was signed to Smackdown while Jeff and Matt were working on Raw. Jeff wasn't thrilled, but Shane was there to watch out for him. Jeff and Shannon's relationship wasn't hidden from the WWE locker room. Neither was Matt and Shane's relationship. The other guys were cool with it, though, seeing as they certainly weren't the only male couples around.  
  
The only problem seemed to come from Rey Mysterio, who was also recently added to the Smackdown roster. He hadn't lost interest in Shannon and it made the blond nervous.  
  
"You said you were with Shane and I respected that," Rey said to him quietly one day in the dining hall. He was a lot more muscular than he'd been in WCW and, even though he had a good few inches on the Latino, Shannon backed away.  
  
"I was," Shannon stammered. "I'm with Jeff now."  
  
"Why?" Rey queried watching Shannon's slow retreat with obvious amusement.  
  
"Jeff and I always had feelings for each other," the blond replied.  
  
"I thought you always loved Shane," Rey said. "And now he's with Jeff's brother."  
  
"We all practically grew up together," Shannon pointed out. "We're all real close."  
  
"You were supposed to come to me when you left Shane," Rey said, advancing once more.  
  
Shannon backed away again and felt the cold wall behind him. He'd just finished working through a match and he didn't have a shirt on.  
  
"You're married, man," Shannon threw out in frustration. "You even have kids. Why are you pursuing me?"  
  
"My family has nothing to do with this," Rey said calmly. "I thought I made myself clear last year, Shannon. I want you."  
  
"Well, he ain't available," Shane growled.  
  
Rey turned to the intruder in irritation. "He's not yours to protect anymore."  
  
"He'll always be my baby brother, Mysterio," Shane countered. "Now get the hell away from him."  
  
Rey turned back to Shannon and smiled, mouthing, "This isn't over," before he stalked away.  
  
"It's always the small ones that bark the most," Shane muttered darkly.  
  
Shannon stood quaking with suddenly released tension. Shane looked at him quizzically and pulled him into a hug. "You all right there, Shanny?"  
  
"Will you please stop calling me that?" Shannon griped, missing Shane's mouth quirk up as he hugged him back.  
  
"How did I become wrestling's version of Britney Spears, Sugar?" Shannon whined.  
  
"I think in Rey's case you're Christina Aguilera."  
  
"Not funny."  
  
"Sorry, kid," Shane grinned.  
  
Shannon sighed in frustration. He was just getting used to feeling safe again and didn't need Rey's unwanted attention to screw that up. He straightened himself out and went to throw away his untouched plate when Shane stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Look, I know you're upset but you can't not eat, Shannon," the older man said. "You have your debut TV match tonight and you need to fuel up. Not to mention you haven't eaten all day."  
  
"I did," Shannon argued. Shane just raised an eyebrow in response. "I really did."  
  
"I know you didn't."  
  
"How?" Shannon was ready to explode all over his friend.  
  
"I'm never far away from you when we're working in the same place," Shane shrugged. "You should know that by now."  
  
"Yeah," Shannon smiled sitting back down. "But soon you'll be going to Raw."  
  
"I know," Shane said sadly, putting his own plate of food down and sitting with Shannon. "I just wish they hadn't decided to switch Matt over instead of Jeff."  
  
"Me too," Shannon sighed. "I miss Jeff so much, Shaney."  
  
"I know you do, kid. I miss Matt just as much."  
  
************************************  
  
"You all ready for your big Smackdown debut?" Jeff said to his brother into the phone.  
  
"I guess," Matt said flatly.  
  
"Hey, don't feel so bad," Jeff tried to cheer Matt up. "You'll be back with Shane, at least for a bit."  
  
"Yeah, but I feel like I'm missing something."  
  
Jeff knew what his brother meant. He felt the same way. They began their wrestling careers together and hadn't really thought about the day they might have to split up and work without each other. Sure they'd done their own singles thing and split up before, but they were always on the same shows and traveled together. Now they couldn't do that and the bond they've had since they were kids couldn't even keep them from hurting over it.  
  
"I know, bro," Jeff said. "But we got to do what they tell us to do, right?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Jay and Adam went through it, too."  
  
"They aren't really brothers," the older Hardy pointed out.  
  
"Neither are Shan and Shane, but they act like it," Jeff countered. Matt grunted. "Hey, it was hard for them when Shan went to OVW. Now he's back and this is probably one of the few times they'll get to work together before Shane comes over here."  
  
"If this had to happen at all, you should have been the one to go to Smackdown," Matt whined. "You're closer to cruiserweight than I am."  
  
"I agree," Jeff said. "But we've always played the hand they dealt us."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Just make the most of tonight, Matt," Jeff suggested. "Then after that, you remember our agreement, right?"  
  
"You watch over my boyfriend, I watch over yours."  
  
"That's my bro."  
  
************************************  
  
Shane didn't know if what he was about to do was a good idea or not. He could just as easily wait until the next Raw and speak to Jeff then, but if this were about Matt, he'd want to know immediately. He found a secluded area after leaving Shannon to catch up with Jamie and John for a while satisfied he would be watched over. He'd caught Cena's eye when he got up and made sure his meaningful look was understood. Cena nodded once and Shane walked off with his cell in hand. He jabbed the numbers in swiftly and waited. Jeff answered on the second ring.  
  
"Shane?" he said.  
  
"How'd you know?"  
  
"Still not using your caller ID?" Jeff asked, amused.  
  
"Yeah, okay," Shane smiled. "We got to talk for a sec."  
  
"What's wrong? Matt okay?"  
  
"Yeah, he's just in a meeting with Stephanie right now," Shane said. "It's Shanny."  
  
"What happened?" Jeff asked in a deceptively quiet voice.  
  
"Rey Mysterio is still interested," Shane said. "He was one of the guys Shannon was scared of in WCW."  
  
"What did the little fucker do to my baby?" Jeff growled.  
  
Shane had to smile at this reaction. He also had to admit that Jeff was every inch the protective boyfriend, much to the contrary of Shane's previous opinion of him. He was exactly what Shannon needed all this time and Shane couldn't feel more relieved. Entrusting one's brother to someone is a serious risk. Shane also knew Jeff went through the same fear over Matt's welfare.  
  
He was confident he'd proved to Jeff just how serious he was. Matt never wanted for anything in this relationship as Shane focused on him completely when they were together. And when they weren't together, they spent hours on the phone. Shane knew how easy it would be to let his relationship fall into neglect. That wouldn't happen with his Matty-boy. Jeff had followed a similar pattern with Shannon, so Shane wasn't worried the young blond was taken for granted.  
  
"He cornered him in the dining room," Shane said, breaking himself back to the present. "I intervened, but I heard most of it."  
  
"You're going to tell me, right?" Jeff grunted. "You'd demand to know too if it happened to Matt."  
  
"I know."  
  
"You did, if I remember correctly."  
  
"I said I know, Jeff," Shane groaned back. "You don't have to remind me."  
  
Shane had nearly flipped a cork when Jeff described Matt's encounter with Batista a short while back. He was glad that Matt wouldn't be around the behemoth anymore, but he still wanted to be on the same show with him. Shaking his head, Shane recounted what he'd heard and seen in the dining room and Jeff exploded.  
  
"I'm going to kick his ass at the next pay-per-view!"  
  
"Jeff, that won't stop him," Shane said tiredly. "In fact, that would probably only urge him to step it up."  
  
"Well, what do you suggest I do?"  
  
"Wait it out," Shane said quietly, knowing Jeff's reaction before he'd said it.  
  
"WHAT!? Is that what YOU'D do?"  
  
"It's what I had to do," Shane replied icily. "Do you think it was easy for me to let you handle Batista?"  
  
"I didn't do anything," Jeff said.  
  
"Oh no?" Shane grinned. "He didn't get injured in the ring, Jeff."  
  
"Ain't MY fault he's clumsy enough to run into Bubba's fist so many times," Jeff sniffed evasively.  
  
Bubba Ray and his TV brother D-Von were good friends of the Hardy Boyz. When they saw Jeff trying to protect his brother from the lecherous giant, they naturally had to lend a hand, or some fists anyway. Shane would have to thank them personally when he went over there.  
  
"Well, you know I'll always be grateful," Shane said.  
  
"He's my brother, Shane," Jeff responded firmly. "No one hurts him."  
  
"I know," Shane replied. "How are we going to get along now?"  
  
"We're getting better at it," Jeff pointed out. "Never thought you'd be dialing my number from a show, did you?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"Matt said he'll watch out for Shan," Jeff said. "I trust him, but I kind of wish you were there for him if I couldn't be."  
  
"I know, fellow Alpha-boy," Shane grimaced. "Me too."  
  
************************************  
  
NOTE: I didn't tie up the Rey angle yet. Of course I had a little more to go. Jeff's still on TV in this chapter. 


	16. More trouble ahead

Shannon sighed under the spray of the shower after his match with Tajiri. It had been a few weeks since Matt moved over to Smackdown and his and Shannon's storyline seemed to be going over well with the fans. Shane's angle with Kane was equally successful from what he'd seen so far. His only worry was his boyfriend. Jeff wasn't putting forth as much effort and enthusiasm as he used to in his work and it was beginning to alarm both Shannon and Matt. Matt called his brother every night to give him a pep talk. Shannon called too to keep Jeff's spirits up as much as possible. Each time Jeff would promise to pick things up a notch, but it never manifested in the Raw programming. And the writers were giving Jeff less and less to do, forcing him to job to newer talent. It was damned frustrating, is what it was, Shannon thought.  
  
Rey was still watching him closely, too. Shannon told Jeff about it when they were together. He didn't want the younger Hardy brother to worry about him but he knew if he didn't tell him and Jeff found out about it later on, he would be hurt that Shannon hadn't trusted him enough to confide in him. And Jeff was one of the very few people Shannon trusted with his life. Matt helped Shannon avoid the small Latino, though, so Shannon wasn't as fearful for his safety as he was before. Matt can be quite intimidating when he wanted to be.  
  
Suddenly the blond felt a hand clamp tightly over his mouth and his back was thrown up against the shower wall. He let out a shriek against the palm but it muffled his cry. He opened his eyes and looked into the narrowed glare of Rey Mysterio.  
  
"Don't make a sound, Shannon," Rey hissed warningly. "I don't really want to hurt you."  
  
Shannon's green gaze widened but he nodded his head nervously, indicating that Rey could take his hand off his mouth. Rey smiled predatorily and moved his hand, running both down Shannon's naked, wet body.  
  
"That's better," he cooed. "Did you think I could forget about you, beautiful?"  
  
Shannon's mouth dropped open but clamped shut when Rey brought a finger up to trace his bottom lip.  
  
"Why do you fight me?" Rey sighed. "I could make you feel so safe and loved."  
  
"Jeff already does that," Shannon snapped trying to pull away. But Rey had him trapped against the wall and crowded in to hold himself against him. His chest was bare and pressed into Shannon's. Thankfully he still wore his trunks, so the taller blond didn't have to deal with that sickening predicament. Rey stood between the blond's legs and had Shannon leaned back against the wall. He was at was eye level with him.  
  
"But Jeff isn't here right now," Rey insisted leaning in.  
  
"That don't matter," Shannon grimaced, turning his head. Rey's lips caressed his cheek softly but Shannon could only feel sick. "And Matt'll kick your ass if he finds you in here with me."  
  
"Matt is busy right now, mi amor."  
  
"I'm not your anything," Shannon squeaked finally pushing Rey a few inches back. "What do you mean he's busy?"  
  
"Just what I said," Rey smiled coyly, then swiftly locked his lips onto Shannon's and forced his tongue inside.  
  
Shannon shrieked again but Rey swallowed it. He tried to push the small Latino away again but Rey was too strong and determined and Shannon couldn't break free. He felt so helpless and dirty that he began to cry. Rey suddenly stopped.  
  
"Don't cry, Shannon," he soothed softly pulling the blond into a tight embrace. "I won't hurt you. I swear I won't."  
  
"Please leave me alone."  
  
"I can't do that, sweet," Rey whispered rocking them back and forth. "But I will promise you that I'll be very gentle with you and I won't try to take you until I think you're ready."  
  
"I love Jeff," Shannon sniffled weakly. "Please just let me be happy."  
  
"You'll be happy with me," Rey said, pulling back and pressing another soft kiss to Shannon's cheek. "I'll keep you safe and happy, essa, I promise. When you're ready."  
  
After a final touch to Shannon's shoulder, Rey was gone. Leaving Shannon a trembling mess in the showers as the water ran over his body.  
  
********************************  
  
Matt regarded the young wrestler in front of him with sad annoyance. It wasn't that he didn't like Billy Kidman as a person. But how should he treat his lover's ex anyway? It certainly posed a dilemma, to say the least. They'd be working together at least for a while and Matt liked to be on good terms with those he performed with. Especially since one wrong move could end either's career.  
  
"Look, Billy," Matt began wearily, "I have to get going. Could you just let me by?"  
  
"How's Shane?" Billy asked again in a monotone.  
  
"He's fine. Can I please?"  
  
"We were very happy for a long time there, Matt," Billy said sadly. "What happened to make him leave me?"  
  
"You'll have to ask him yourself at the next pay-per-view," Matt replied feeling his anger rise. Matt didn't like the idea of Billy talking with Shane period, but it wasn't for him to say why Shane broke up with him. It wasn't his relationship then.  
  
"Well, I think I know why," Billy grunted accusingly. "You."  
  
"He broke up with you a year before I hooked up with him," Matt said between gritted teeth. "I had nothing to do with his decision to end things with you."  
  
"We were happy," Billy insisted. "I loved him more than anyone ever could. I still do."  
  
Matt's jealousy finally surfaced. "Well, I'm truly sorry you can't get over him, Billy," he growled. "But he's with me now and that's not changing."  
  
"How do you know?" Billy sneered. "What makes you think he won't leave you as lost as he did to me? Trust me, Matt. I know how it feels to love him and I can see that you do. But I loved him, too and he left me. What will you do when he leaves you?"  
  
"He's never leaving me," Matt seethed. "I know."  
  
"Either you're deluding yourself," Billy taunted, "or you DO know something about why he left me. I know he wasn't really going out with that little blond, so it wasn't another man, besides you that is. Why?"  
  
"Like I said," Matt replied, pushing past the angry wrestler, "you'll have to ask him yourself."  
  
He stalked away before Billy could say anything else. He passed Rey Mysterio who gave him a wide grin as he passed. Uh oh. Shannon.  
  
********************************  
  
"Oh my God, Shannon!"  
  
Matt's voice broke into Shannon's thoughts. The water suddenly stopped and he could see a pair of legs standing in front of him. Matt! Thank God! Shannon couldn't find his voice though and just leaned into the older Hardy as Matt picked him up and carried him out of the shower.  
  
"It's okay, Shan," Matt soothed as he wrapped a huge towel around the trembling blond and held him close. "It's okay. I'm so sorry I wasn't here. I won't do that to you again. Please be okay."  
  
Shannon's sobs slowly abated and he clung to Matt and listened to his comforting voice while the larger man rubbed his back and arms, trying to get some warmth back into him.  
  
"It's okay," Matt said again.  
  
"No, it's not," Shannon whispered back. "It ain't going to be okay, Matt. He won't go away. He told me so." He then went on to tell Matt everything that had happened.  
  
"I'll hurt him for you," Matt said enraged, and Shannon could see in his eyes that Matt meant it.  
  
"No, you can't get in trouble because of me," the blond shook his head. "Just promise me you'll never leave me alone again."  
  
"I can do that," Matt replied.  
  
"I told him you would be back but he seemed sure you would be too busy," Shannon sighed, leaning his head against Matt's shoulder.  
  
"He said that?" Matt asked quietly, causing Shannon to look back up and nod. "Kidman," Matt's voice was flat.  
  
Shannon looked at him in confusion but Matt only shook his head and hugged him tighter.  
  
"Maybe I shouldn't tell Jeff," Shannon said more to himself than to Matt.  
  
"That's not the way to handle it," Matt said. "You know he'd be crushed if he ever found out."  
  
"But you wouldn't tell him, would you?" Shannon looked back up.  
  
"He's my brother, Shan," Matt said gently. "I wouldn't lie to him. I promised him I'd protect you."  
  
Shannon sighed.  
  
"Besides," Matt reasoned. "Rey will likely tell him anyway to play mind games with you."  
  
"I didn't think of that," Shannon admitted.  
  
"We can't let them drive a wedge between us and our guys," Matt said seriously. "We'll be honest with Shane and Jeff about what's going on and let them help us. Just like you're supposed to in any relationship."  
  
"Thanks for being there for me, Matt."  
  
"Friends do that, Shanny."  
  
"You've been listening to Shane too much," Shannon groused at the nickname.  
  
Matt laughed.  
  
********************************  
  
NOTE: I'm sorry I couldn't post this weekend. I was all set to read and review HD's newest "Undisputed" chapter when I read her note about updating this story. So I meekly slunk away and opened my Word program. SORRY everyone! 


	17. Shannon saves Matt?

Jeff's fist hit the punching bag with so much force Shane thought it would fly off the mounting. The younger Hardy had been constantly working out his aggression ever since that phone call from Shannon. Shane couldn't blame the younger man though. If something like that had happened to Matt, he knew he'd be equally enraged. What made matters worse was that Jeff couldn't even do anything about it. He was halfway across the country and Rey had an unchallenged playing field.  
  
Unchallenged except for Matt, that is. The older Hardy had taken up the cause with a vengeance, challenging Rey both in and out of the ring. The writers seemed to like the idea, too, as they'd decided to give Matt the win for the cruiserweight title. It was a bit of stretch to imagine Matt as a cruiserweight, but this should definitely get Mysterio's attention.  
  
Shane turned his mind to his former boyfriend. He'd never pegged Billy for the stalking type. Though Shane knew Kidman wouldn't try to attack him the way Mysterio was trying to do to Shannon, it was unnerving that he was willing to work with Rey to distract Matt. It was also very disturbing that Billy held their break up against Matt. Shane hadn't mentioned his feelings for Matt or even hinted at them when he'd broken up with Billy. He'd only said that Billy was getting too serious and that Shane couldn't return the feelings to that depth. How Billy had figured his feelings out was a mystery. He'd spent very little time with the Hardy brothers on those rare occasions when Shane brought him to North Carolina. He had to talk to Billy at the pay-per-view and hopefully settle the matter.  
  
He looked up to see Jeff punch and kick the bag again.  
  
"Hey, Hardy boy!" Shane called. "Calm the hell down."  
  
"Calm down?" Jeff turned a blazing green gaze onto Shane. "He almost RAPED my baby, Shane! How the hell am I supposed to ever calm down?"  
  
"Look, I completely understand, but you have to calm down," Shane tried reasoning with him. "How is this helping? You're going to expend all of your energy before the show tonight, miss spots and get in trouble again."  
  
"He's right."  
  
Both men turned to the gym's doorway to observe Jay's approach. Lance and Chris brought up the rear. Phew, reinforcements, Shane thought.  
  
"What's going on?" Jay asked when he stopped a couple feet from them.  
  
"Nothing," Jeff growled.  
  
"That's not helpful either," Shane admonished. "They're our friends. Maybe they can help. Or maybe they can just calm your ass down."  
  
"Well, there's a first time for everything," Chris grinned.  
  
"You know you can trust us, Jeff," Jay said quietly, his penetrating gaze set on the fuming Hardy. "We've been friends since we started."  
  
"I know," Jeff said looking away.  
  
"My ex is bothering Matt," Shane began. "He's now working with someone after Shannon to try and separate him from Matt."  
  
"What's he planning to do to Shannon?" Lance asked. Shane knew the "serious" Canadian remembered all of Shannon's trouble back in WCW. Lance had even saved the blond from a drunken Mike Awesome one time. "I assume it's a he."  
  
"Yeah, it's a he," Jeff grunted. "Mysterio."  
  
Lance's eyes widened at the name. "That runt is at it again?" he asked in a disbelieving pitch. "How many times does Shannon have to tell him he's not interested?"  
  
"Probably as often as he had to tell Karagias," Shane muttered darkly.  
  
Jay studied the group thoughtfully then whipped out his cell phone and punched the keys quickly.  
  
"What are you doing?" Jeff asked. Shane watched the longhaired Canadian curiously.  
  
"Adam?" Jay said into the phone. "Yeah, it's me. Who else?" He listened for a second. "Funny. Listen, there's something I want you to do for me."  
  
*****************************  
  
Matt ran into the locker room as soon as his match was over. He hated when he had to go to the ring without Shannon because if the match wasn't against Mysterio, he could never be sure the blond was safe. But things weren't as bad as they were before. John Cena and Jamie Noble were always around Shannon, even when Matt wasn't at ringside. Although he hated enduring Kidman's fulminating glances, the other wrestler hadn't approached him again. Cena made the atmosphere too uncomfortable for Kidman the only time he'd tried.  
  
And Mysterio had to ogle Shannon from afar now. Adam Copeland kept him too busy training for their new tag team matches to get anywhere near the young blond. Matt suspected Jay had something to do with that. Jeff had told him that he and Shane spoke to the Raw Canadians about their quandary in the gym. When Jeff almost lost it at the pay-per-view and went after Rey, Matt thought his brother would be fired. It didn't even seem like Jeff cared about that it either, which scared Matt. He'd never seen his brother so apathetic about his career before.  
  
Shannon sat on a bench in the room talking to Jamie about a match the other wrestler was going to have with Tajiri, who also stood nearby. Cena was standing in the corner talking to Lesnar but keeping his eye on the bench where Shannon sat. Matt smiled at Cena and walked back to the showers. He now knew how difficult it was to keep Shannon safe and wondered how Shane had managed it by himself in WCW. But then he wasn't alone there. He'd had the Steiners and Stasiak. Sadly, Stasiak was let go from WWE and Scott Steiner was restricted to Raw programming, so Matt was very thankful for Shannon's OVW contacts.  
  
He stripped himself and jumped into the shower, lathering himself up quickly. While he was rinsing the conditioner from his hair the shower curtain opened and he found himself looking into the irritated eyes of Billy Kidman.  
  
"Why can't you just leave it alone?" he asked Billy angrily.  
  
"Because I can't," Billy stated. "Why does Shane love you and not me?"  
  
"Didn't you ask him at the pay-per-view, like I told you to?"  
  
"Yes," Billy hissed. "But he only said that he wasn't in love with me. He says he is in love with you and I want to know why."  
  
"Yeah, Matt," Rey said moving into view. "Why?"  
  
Matt wasn't scared for his own safety. He would fight them if he had to and he knew he would win if only for the pure rage he was presently feeling.  
  
"Look, you two pervs," he ground out. "I'm trying to shower. Why don't you go back into the locker room and we can continue the discussion when I'm done?"  
  
Rey smirked evilly at him.  
  
"Like your friends would really let us talk to you," Billy replied. "No, we'll have the discussion here."  
  
"Get the!"  
  
Matt's voice was cut off by Billy's hand. Rey moved in and held the Hardy boy's arms. Matt struggled and kicked out at Billy while the other two wrestlers pulled him to the floor of the shower and held him there.  
  
"He looks good wet, Billy," he heard Rey say as the small Latino sat on his back to keep him down. "If you can't have Shane, maybe you should settle for his punta."  
  
"I want Shane and he won't take me back if I hurt Matt."  
  
"He won't take you back anyway," Shannon's voice cut through the air.  
  
Suddenly Matt felt Rey's weight being forcefully removed from his back. Billy had been pulled back as well and Cena helped Matt to his feet. Shannon turned off the shower and wrapped a towel around Matt's waist. Matt looked up to see Rey being held in check by Lesnar and Billy was standing warily between Tajiri and Jamie.  
  
"I don't want to have to warn you two again to stay away from them," Lesnar ground out. "I'm sick of watching you stalk them. Kidman, get over Helms. He's moved on. Mysterio, for God's sakes, you're a married man! Leave Shannon alone."  
  
The two angry wrestlers didn't acknowledge Brock's warning. Rey just pulled away, glared at Shannon for a minute and walked away, dragging Kidman behind him.  
  
"We're all here for you," Brock said to Matt as he pushed away from the wall he leaned against and left the room.  
  
*****************************  
  
"You want to talk about it?" Shannon asked quietly in the hotel room later on.  
  
He was worried because Matt had hardly said two words on the ride back from the arena. It was difficult to watch his normally tough, proud friend sink into this dark melancholia.  
  
"How do you do it?" Matt finally asked, surprising Shannon, as he hadn't really expected an answer.  
  
"Do what?"  
  
"Deal with guys like Rey day in and day out."  
  
"Well, I guess because I've always had to," Shannon reasoned sitting on the bed next to Matt. "It's common to be picked on when you're this small. Though it's usually a bigger man that does the picking."  
  
"I thought I could take them both," Matt said sadly. "I thought I had nothing to worry about."  
  
"If push came to shove, my money would have been on you," Shannon smiled. "I've seen you mad."  
  
"I couldn't move."  
  
"You would have found a way if they really tried something," Shannon argued. "Look, even Evan and Juvi knew they had to drug ME to get what they wanted, so I KNOW you could have taken on Billy and Rey if you had to, Matt."  
  
"But."  
  
"No buts," Shannon said sternly. "We ain't no pussies."  
  
"Still, if Lesnar hadn't stopped them."  
  
"You would have," Shannon said confidently. "I know you would have."  
  
*****************************  
  
NOTE: Shannon gets to save Matt for a change! I'm moving it towards Jeff's WWE departure, but you already knew that. I hope it's still holding interest. 


	18. A look into Rey's mind

Rey was whistling a tune to himself as he finished up his workout. The hotel gym was empty and he had been able to get a lot of work done. His abs still ached a little from where Matt had kicked him during their match. It may have looked like an accident to everyone else but Rey knew the older Hardy meant it as revenge for the shower attack and as a warning to stay away from Shannon Moore.  
  
Well, Rey had tried to stay away from the blond. Ever since WCW, he'd tried. He had suspected that Shane's relationship with Shannon was just a ploy to keep Juvi and Evan away from him. But, seeing as the blond was obviously terrified of what they'd done, he'd never really pressed the issue. He found out some months later what the two bastards had planned to do and it made him physically ill. So sick, in fact, that when he'd run into Juvi not too long ago, he'd beaten the shit out of him, then tracked Evan down and did the same to him.  
  
Rey wasn't really sure why he'd done it. He hadn't had any qualms with the two in the past. But drugging Shannon and trying to violate him when he was defenseless made Rey's blood boil. Shannon was an innocent as far as the Latino was concerned. He hadn't done anything to indicate he'd wanted to sleep with Evan either. And the thought of the blond sleeping with anyone other than himself infuriated Rey.  
  
He could only say that something inside of him was attracted to Shannon and he couldn't let it go. He fumed when he'd found out that Shannon and Shane had "broken up." Rey had told Shannon to come to him when he and Shane were no longer together because that meant that Shannon was ready for a real relationship again and there was no doubt in the Latino's mind that he was the one Shannon should be with.  
  
He loved his family. He'd tried to give up his male lovers when he and Angie married. And again when they started having children. But every time he made the decision to do it, he caved. He had a natural inclination to "lovingly" dominate (as he saw it) other men. He couldn't help it. And this crush on Shannon was worse than any of the others he'd had before. The blond was always on his mind. He couldn't help watching Shannon whenever he was near him. He knew it made the other wrestler nervous and hated that Shannon tried to avoid him. For the last year and a half, he held Rey's attention. The small Latino had even taken other lovers similar in size and look to get Shannon out of his system, but his heart wouldn't be fooled. He couldn't substitute anyone for Shannon.  
  
Jeff Hardy was an obstacle Rey couldn't figure out how to get rid of, either. There was a definite history between the punky younger Hardy and Shannon. Unlike the Helms-relationship, as Rey was fond of calling it, Shannon shared an evident bond with Jeff and Rey knew it would be nearly impossible to break. Not completely, though. After all, Jeff could only see Shannon one or two days a week, if even that. And Rey was near him for much of the rest of the week.  
  
Matt was another problem, as he'd rallied all of his friends around to watch out for the young, sexy blond. That infuriated Rey even more. Until Kidman let his hidden feelings for Helms show one drunken night. That had been the start of their alliance against Matt Hardy. Rey didn't wish anything bad for Matt, but if Kidman could keep him busy, Rey could have a better chance at getting to Shannon.  
  
And that kiss he'd finally stolen from the blond was the last straw. He knew that Shannon hadn't wanted it and had fought against it, but Rey had a taste of him now and he couldn't even contemplate letting things go anymore. Shannon was in his blood. He would help the young blond get over Jeff and fall in love with him. He had to.  
  
The slamming door brought his attention back and he looked up to see the new guy, Nathan Jones, preparing the weight bench for presses. Rey studied him for a while before moving over to him, an idea beginning to form. Another ally would be a welcome change in the odds, he thought to himself as he grinned up at Nathan.  
  
*****************************  
  
"So, now I guess I get to tell you to calm down?" Jeff asked as he plunked down on one of the beds in the room he was sharing with Shane.  
  
He almost laughed when Shane turned an incensed glance in his direction. Almost. He didn't have it in him to taunt his former nemesis-turned good friend.  
  
"For what it's worth," the younger Hardy said, "I know exactly how you feel."  
  
"I know you do," Shane grunted. "It still doesn't help us."  
  
"I know," Jeff sighed.  
  
"I just wish one of us were there," Shane went on. "I trust our friends, but I would feel better if one of us was there."  
  
Jeff was quiet for a moment, trying to decide how to word his plan. He knew Matt would freak if he'd given him any idea of what he'd intended to do, though the warning signs were definitely there. He just wondered how Shane was going to react to it.  
  
"I hear the wheels creaking into motion there, Jeff," Shane muttered. "What's going on in that intricately complicated head of yours?"  
  
"Intricately complicated, huh?" Jeff laughed. "That's a new one."  
  
"Not really," Shane smiled, moving his dark brown gaze back to the cape he was currently twisting in his hands. He was sitting back against the headboard of the bed with his elbows resting on his knees. "Now spill."  
  
"I agree that one of us needs to be available for them," Jeff started. "And one of us will be."  
  
Shane looked back up at him expectantly then snorted when Jeff wouldn't answer. "Are you going to tell me you had yourself switched to Smackdown?"  
  
"Nothing so lucky could happen given the current state of my relationship with management," Jeff smiled grimly.  
  
"Well?" Shane finally cried in exasperation. "What then?"  
  
"I'm leaving."  
  
Shane deadpanned at that, apparently thinking Jeff was joking.  
  
"I'm serious, Sugar-boy," Jeff said looking back down. "Tonight was my last match. At least for a while."  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?" Shane sprang up from the bed and plunked down on the end of Jeff's.  
  
"I can't concentrate on the matches," Jeff explained. "I know everyone backstage thinks I'm a screw-up without Matt."  
  
"Not all of us think that," Shane pointed out. "Your friends know what's going on."  
  
"Yeah, but they're not the management. And the management isn't interested in excuses."  
  
"That doesn't mean you quit, Jeff!"  
  
Jeff smiled again. A year ago, it would have been inconceivable that Shane Helms would be sitting in a hotel, rooming with Jeff Hardy, and trying to talk him into staying in wrestling. Once they got past the miscommunications, Shane turned out to be a good friend and a great ear. But Jeff knew he would continue to make the mistakes he'd been making in the ring. And the longer he went on worrying about Shannon instead of protecting him, the worse he would get.  
  
"Shane, you know I can't even think about my career right now," Jeff said, looking back up at his friend.  
  
Shane looked like he wanted to argue but he only nodded.  
  
"One day I'm going to get myself or my opponent injured if I keep this up," Jeff said sadly. "Maybe even seriously enough to end a career. What we do in the ring is not to be taken lightly."  
  
Shane nodded again and looked away. Jeff could see the older man knew he was right and that this was the only sensible choice left.  
  
"Look, it ain't like it's forever," Jeff said. "J.R. said the door would stay cracked open for possibilities down the road."  
  
"How long down the road?" Shane snorted. "The fans aren't always loyal. Look at what happened to Rocky."  
  
"Heel or face, he'll always be able to come home," Jeff said. "And if the fans don't want me back when I'm ready, so be it. I can't let that be a factor now. Shan's all I can think about and as long as my mind can't focus, I have no business risking my safety or anyone else's for that matter. I almost took off Rob's head last week. I couldn't forgive myself if I did anything like that again, especially knowing I could have stopped it."  
  
"Well," Shane said. "I know you might think I'm not very disappointed about this but I am. We've become pretty good friends lately. It's good to have a fellow Omega to hang out with."  
  
"I'm sorry I'm leaving you here," Jeff replied. "But I know the Canadians will keep you busy."  
  
"Those drama queens?" Shane feigned a horrified expression. "I'll never survive."  
  
*****************************  
  
NOTE: What's Nathan got to do with Rey and Billy? Will Jeff get there in time? Tune in again and find out! (Yeah, HD, this means YOU! How mean was that cliffhanger in "Undisputed"?) 


	19. Jeff shows up

Matt grasped his ankle and cursed. Damn that Nathan Jones! Matt knew the bump had to have been intentional. Though Nathan now looked as apologetic as can be, Matt didn't miss the slight smirk he'd made when the hit connected. And Rey's own triumphant smirk greeted Matt when the trainers helped him into the treating room. Well, Rey or no, Jones was going to be in the hot seat for this one. The McMahons took injuries very seriously and most particularly when those injuries were caused by rookies. The Australian giant was about to learn that lesson the hard way.  
  
This was just great! First, he hears this morning that Jeff's left wrestling and before he can even track him down and find out why, he gets hit with the psycho from Down Under. Matt glanced up to see Nathan's concerned look. It wasn't an act anymore as Stephanie could be heard down the hall nearby approaching the area. She wasn't happy about it either. Matt smiled inwardly at the impending scene. At least he would find it entertaining while the trainers poked and prodded him.  
  
"Can you move it at all?" Shannon asked worriedly from the side of the room.  
  
"A little," Matt answered through gritted teeth. "But it hurts like a bitch!"  
  
The blond nodded solemnly and sat in a chair near the wall to give the trainers the room they needed to treat Matt's ankle.  
  
"Well, under the circumstances, you'll probably have to sit the next few shows out," Stephanie determined from the doorway. "We can get you a ticket on a flight back to North Carolina tonight."  
  
"Tonight?" Shannon asked. He gave Matt an unreadable glance. It was unreadable to everyone else in the room but Matt. The small wrestler was terrified.  
  
"I'd rather he not travel with that ankle until it's had at least a few days to rest," one of the trainers broke in. Stephanie nodded and wrote some notes down on a pad.  
  
"I can travel," Matt insisted. "I'll just stay in the room."  
  
"Why risk further injury, Matt?" Stephanie asked picking up her cell phone to call the WWE travel department. "No, you're too important to the show. You'll rest up at home for at least a week. Then we'll see how your ankle is."  
  
Matt threw Shannon an apologetic look as Stephanie finished her call and turned to Nathan.  
  
"In my office," she hissed. "Now!"  
  
The two left the room with the large man's head bowed meekly.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Shanny," Matt said.  
  
"For what?" he replied. "You didn't do anything wrong. Jones did."  
  
"That'll teach him to listen to scheming midgets," Jeff said from the doorway.  
  
Shannon's eyes flew to Jeff with a mixture of relief and sadness. Matt smiled in understanding. He now knew why Jeff left Raw, and he couldn't exactly say he was surprised.  
  
****************************  
  
"What are you doing here?" Shannon demanded as he jumped into Jeff's arms. "I've been trying to call you all day."  
  
"I'm sorry, baby," Jeff sighed into his ear. "My battery died and I've been traveling all day to get to you so I haven't had time to recharge it."  
  
Shannon gave him another tight squeeze before pulling away and glaring at him. He wasn't happy when he'd heard the news about Jeff's release and he knew he had to have had something to do with it, albeit inadvertently. Jeff pulled back and leaned against the wall expectantly. He was apparently prepared for Shannon's reaction.  
  
"Why did you do it?" Shannon growled. "Please don't give me any lies either."  
  
"I never lie to you," Jeff replied.  
  
"Bullshit," Matt coughed into his hand and his brother and Shannon both looked in his direction, as if finally remembering his presence.  
  
"Jeff, you lied to him for years when you tried to make him believe you just wanted friendship from him," Matt looked angry. And in pain. Shannon walked back to his side guiltily, knowing he was to blame for this incident, too. Jeff walked over as well.  
  
"That wasn't lying," the younger Hardy retorted. "It was simply an omission of the complete truth."  
  
"Uh huh," Matt said with a raised eyebrow. "One which caused both of you years of pain and loneliness."  
  
"Yeah," Jeff whistled. "Not at all like you and Shane, right?"  
  
Matt flushed and looked back down. Shannon smiled a little but said nothing. He didn't like to interfere in the brothers' relationship. They were so close and no matter what happened, they would remain that way. He wasn't jealous. They were both friends of his before and his friendship with Matt hadn't changed at all since he and Jeff started dating.  
  
The last of the trainers finished wrapping Matt's ankle and looked at it one more time to make sure it was okay. He then left the room.  
  
"I take it you're out of action for a bit?" Jeff changed the subject, frowning at Matt's cursed ankle.  
  
"Yeah," Matt muttered. "Sorry about that."  
  
"Like Shan said, you didn't do it," Jeff shrugged. "And he who did is about to be punished." He looked toward the doorway where Stephanie and Nathan had gone a little while before. "Too bad Rey won't be, too."  
  
"Yeah," Shannon murmured.  
  
"Don't you worry about him," Jeff said looking into his eyes. "I'm here for you now."  
  
"I knew it!" Shannon exploded. "You left Raw for me, didn't you?" He started pacing the small room in agitation. He and Jeff were both living their childhood dream. But now his stalker problems were getting in the way and Jeff was paying the price.  
  
"Shan, I left Raw for more than you," Jeff said tiredly. "I'm a danger to those I work with now and it's not right for me to ask them to risk their careers."  
  
Shannon looked back into his lover's eyes and saw the quiet fear in them, and he was taken aback by it. Jeff had never looked like that before. Almost haunted is how Shannon would describe it. Shannon had tried to cope with their long distance relationship as best as he could, too. Apparently he had done a better job of it than Jeff. The younger Hardy was clearly not able to handle being apart from him for too long now that they'd declared their love. As touched as Shannon was he also felt a tremendous amount of guilt over it.  
  
"Well, I guess this means I can relax for the moment," Matt grumbled.  
  
"Just go home and keep Amy company for a while," Shannon suggested with a half-hearted smile.  
  
"I'd rather be keeping Shane company," Matt whined.  
  
****************************  
  
"Damn it, Jeff's here now," Rey seethed.  
  
Billy shook his head and went back to his TV program. He was beginning to tire of Rey's obsession. In fact, he was beginning to tire of the whole plan. Sure he loved Shane and yes he was angry that Matt had him. But the Nathan angle bothered him. He really didn't want to hurt Matt. He had pretty much worked it out of his system after he'd confronted Matt in the shower. After trying to scare the older Hardy by pulling him down to the floor, he was shocked when Rey suggested he do something to him since he couldn't have Shane. Is that what he'd become? Wouldn't that put him in the same class as those psychos, Juvi and Evan? He wouldn't become like them, he decided. This ended here.  
  
"Are you listening to me?" Rey growled  
  
"Do I have a choice?" Billy spat back.  
  
Rey looked surprised. Evidently he hadn't expected Billy to snap at him. Billy grinned at the small amount of power he suddenly felt.  
  
"I thought you were with me on this," Rey said slowly.  
  
"I was," Billy replied.  
  
Rey regarded him for a minute before grabbing the remote and clicking the TV off.  
  
"What's changed?"  
  
"I don't like this anymore," Billy sighed. "I never wanted it to go so far."  
  
"I thought you wanted Shane."  
  
"I do," Billy sighed. "But not if he doesn't want me. And by that, I mean me without us scheming. He was always honest with me, Rey Rey. I loved that about him."  
  
"But having him is having him."  
  
"This isn't a game," Billy shook his head. "This is real. People's lives are being screwed with. Do you even care that Nathan is probably going to be sent back to developmental for what you asked him to do?"  
  
Rey's face reddened and he looked down.  
  
"And Matt could have come away from that match with much worse than a sprained ankle," Billy continued. "I know you think you're doing what's best for Shannon, but that's not for you to decide."  
  
"Who says?" Rey demanded, looking back up sharply.  
  
"I do," Billy replied. "Let me ask you this. What makes what you're doing any better than what Evan did?"  
  
Rey's face contorted in rage. "I would NEVER drug and violate Shannon."  
  
"No," Billy conceded. "But you would trick him and manipulate him."  
  
Rey sat back thoughtfully and sighed. Billy reclaimed the remote control and switched the TV back on. He only hoped he'd made it through to Rey the way he needed to.  
  
****************************  
  
NOTE: Updated at last! Sorry it took a bit longer. This is less of a cliffie now. (HD, where are YOUR updates? Hmm?) 


	20. Rey's change of heart

"I am NOT like Juvi and Evan," Rey thought to himself the next morning. He had been obsessing over Billy's allegations ever since their conversation last night. He had lost a lot of sleep over them, too, while Billy snoozed soundly in the next bed. The bastard.  
  
Rey had to concede that having Nathan hurt Matt might have been going a little too far. Stephanie hadn't yet rendered judgment over whether to send Nathan to developmental for a while and the Latino felt guilty for involving him in his plans. But that still didn't mean he was as bad as Shannon's two former stalkers. He sighed as he entered the hotel gym. It would be a very early workout, but seeing as he couldn't sleep, he might as well make use of his time. He stopped short when he noticed a figure hunched over the weight bench, deep in thought.  
  
Shannon apparently hadn't heard anyone open the door. He was adjusting the weights on the machine slowly, as if his mind was on something else. Rey's first instinct was to quietly approach the blond and make another move on him. But Billy's words still rang in his ears and he silently wondered if pursuing Shannon had caused the younger man further grief in his already complicated life. Weighing his options, he suddenly found it was too late to make a choice. Shannon had turned and looked up at him, his expression immediately becoming guarded. He straightened and took a step back, making Rey wince inwardly. When had he become so reviled by this young man? He knew though that he deserved Shannon's reaction.  
  
Sighing and moving slowly so as not to scare the blond further, Rey moved into the room and let the door shut behind him. Shannon's eyes widened slightly but he stood his ground.  
  
"I'm not going to torture you," Rey said breaking the silence.  
  
"Uh huh," Shannon replied doubtfully.  
  
"I mean it," the Latino said. "I'm really not."  
  
"And I should believe this why?"  
  
Rey sighed again. How did he go about apologizing for his behavior in recent weeks. He still felt something for Shannon, but he knew the young blond would never feel anything romantic for him. Especially after everything he'd put him through.  
  
"You have no reason to," Rey nodded. "But I'd still like you to."  
  
"No offense, Rey, but our track record on trust issues sucks," Shannon said raising an eyebrow. "And one of my best friends took the brunt of it last night."  
  
"I know," Rey's cheeks reddened. "That's one of the reasons I can't sleep. I can't believe I let this go so far."  
  
"I'll be sure I tell Matt," Shannon said dryly, moving to collect his things.  
  
"Don't let me chase you out," Rey said sadly. Shannon shot him a sarcastic glance. "No, I mean it. I'll go if it'll make you feel better."  
  
"I was done anyways," the blond replied.  
  
"Shannon, please," Rey tried. "I'm really, really sorry about everything. I know I've been a bastard to you."  
  
"You figure that out on your own?"  
  
"No, it was pointed out to me last night," Rey said looking down. "I've become no better than those other pricks who were after you."  
  
"Yeah, well, no argument there," Shannon muttered. "At least I forgot about them for a while."  
  
"You should forget about them permanently," Rey insisted looking back up into Shannon's green eyes.  
  
"I would, but every time I do, they show up again."  
  
"They won't show up again," Rey said confidently. "Trust me on that at least."  
  
"They won't, huh?" Shannon looked doubtful again. "How do you know that for sure?"  
  
"Because I told them if they ever tried to violate you again I would end their careers."  
  
"You did?" Shannon exclaimed, his eyes widened in surprise. "When? Why? Oh, I think I know why. You wanted me for yourself."  
  
"That's not why I did it, essa," Rey said, trying to explain. "What they did to you made me sick. You're essentially an innocent in this business, Shannon. My instinct was to protect you and avenge what happened. My interest just turned bad, that's all. When Billy told me I was turning into Evan last night, I knew he was right."  
  
"Billy said that?"  
  
Rey nodded sullenly.  
  
"So, he's not planning to hurt Matt further?"  
  
"Billy says he doesn't want to go down that road anymore," Rey shrugged. "That if Shane can't love him for being him, he wouldn't try manipulation. It wasn't meant to be."  
  
"For what it's worth," Shannon sighed. "Thanks for threatening Evan and Juvi for me."  
  
"I wasn't alone," Rey smirked. "Chavo helped me. And when Eddie found out what Chavo was going to do, he jumped in."  
  
"Los Guerreros got in on it?"  
  
"Juvi has been giving us Latinos a bad name," Rey smiled. "Eddie hates that shit."  
  
"I see," Shannon chuckled.  
  
It was good to finally have a tension free conversation with the blond. Rey felt as if a demon had been lifted from his shoulders.  
  
"Can I ask you something?" Shannon broke Rey's thoughts. He turned to the blond and nodded. "Why do you go out with guys when you so obviously love Angie?"  
  
Rey bristled for a moment He hated analyzing this part of himself, but he knew he owed Shannon an answer. Or at least a theory.  
  
"I'm not sure myself," he began slowly. "I've tried to stop a few times. Angie is wonderful and I love her very, very much. But I can't get everything I need from her."  
  
"What happens if you find a guy," Shannon began looking furtively around the room. "A willing guy and he gives you everything you need?"  
  
"That won't happen," Rey grinned. "She gives me things I can't get from guys."  
  
"So you're hopelessly bi?"  
  
"It seems that way."  
  
"What if she finds out?"  
  
Rey was quiet for a moment, studying his hands. It made him sad to think of his wife's plight, but he couldn't control himself. He looked up at Shannon's expectant gaze and shrugged. "She knows," he said simply. "We've never directly discussed it, but she's made it clear in subtle ways that she knows. I'm sure it bothers her, but she doesn't say anything about it."  
  
"Well, that explains part of it, doesn't it?" Shannon smiled.  
  
"What?"  
  
"She has to love you a lot to know about this and not make a fuss."  
  
Rey shrugged again, but inwardly he felt good. Angie must love him a great deal and he loved her, too. He probably would never be able to give up dating men, but it was good to know he wasn't lying to her.  
  
************************  
  
"Shannon?" Jeff called out nervously. He'd just woken to an empty bed and noted the dark bathroom. He got up to search it anyway. Where could the blond be? He hoped he wasn't being preyed upon. That damned Mysterio could be anywhere.  
  
The click of the door gave him a start and he was relieved when Shannon walked into the room.  
  
"There you are," he said gathering the blond against him. "What did I tell you about going off on your own?"  
  
"I'm fine," Shannon muttered, annoyed.  
  
Jeff smirked behind his back as he held him tighter. There was nothing cuter than a peeved Shannon Moore. He'd never admit that to his lover, but it was true. He pulled away and examined the younger man carefully to make sure everything was okay.  
  
"I said I was fine," Shannon rolled his eyes and put his duffle bag down in the corner. His hair was pulled into a tight ponytail, which he'd just reached up to release and Jeff watched in fascination as the blond hair spilled out and brushed against Shannon's shoulders.  
  
"I just don't want anything to happen to you," Jeff said neutrally. But his eyes were still on Shannon's hair. And his now-bare chest, as Shannon was slowly stripping for an after workout shower.  
  
"Well, I did bump into Rey," Shannon admitted.  
  
"What?!"  
  
"Take it easy," Shannon said sternly. "He wasn't after me and I CAN take care of myself now and then. I am a professional wrestler, you know."  
  
Jeff's raised an eyebrow in irritation and flopped down on the end of the bed. "Talk," he demanded, crossing his arms. "Now."  
  
"Not much to say really," Shannon shrugged. "He's sorry for things going so far and won't be bothering me again."  
  
"Pfft," Jeff replied.  
  
"I believe him," Shannon said. "He said Billy told him they were becoming like Juvi and Evan."  
  
Jeff could feel the rage begin to simmer inside of him at the very mention of those disgusting men. But he remained silent.  
  
"I believe him," Shannon repeated glaring pointedly at Jeff. "And this means you can go back to work."  
  
"No, it does NOT," Jeff growled. "I TOLD you I didn't just leave to protect you."  
  
"But, Jeff, you're a huge star," Shannon whined. "You CAN'T just give that up."  
  
"Watch me," Jeff glowered.  
  
"Your career," Shannon approached him entreatingly. "I can't let you do that."  
  
"If my career is meant to continue, it will be there when I'm ready," Jeff said with certainty. He knew he'd made the right decision on this.  
  
"But I'm not that big a star," Shannon said. "Let me take the break for you."  
  
Shannon still didn't get it and Jeff's heart was heavy at the thought. They'd always understood each other so well.  
  
"Look, baby," Jeff said, pulling Shannon down onto the bed with him and spooning him from behind. "I'm just not as into wrestling as I used to be and it's a problem." He put a finger to Shannon's lips when he felt the blond would interrupt. "It's not your fault. And you will be as big a star as me. Maybe bigger."  
  
Shannon squirmed and shook his head, which made Jeff laugh and kiss his ear.  
  
"Yes," Jeff insisted. "You will. It's your turn now, baby. I just want to sit back and watch you shine."  
  
"But I want to do that WITH you."  
  
"Someday, I'll go back," Jeff whispered. "I promise. I just can't do it right now. I can't be away from you anymore and I want you to become the superstar I know you were meant to be. This is the right thing for me to do, baby. I promise you, I didn't come to this decision overnight."  
  
"But, Jeff."  
  
"No buts," Jeff smiled into Shannon's soft mane. "I need to be with you, baby. I need to FEEL you with me for a while. Not just one or two days every other week or so, but constantly."  
  
Shannon was quiet for a while. Jeff had just started wondering if he'd fallen asleep when his voice broke the silence. "If you really feel you need to do this I'm behind you," Shannon said softly. "I love you, Jeff."  
  
"I love you, too, Shannon."  
  
************************  
  
NOTE: Is that it? Not if you don't want it to be. I could bring it up to present in the next chapter and then update it when Jeff returns, if you like. Or I could leave it here, with our two favorites in our favorite place: bed. You all tell me what you want. In the mean time, I'm pondering my next pairing. Hmm . . . Shannon / Shane? Shannon / Matt? Hmmmm. 


	21. Will you?

The months had been good to Jeff and Shannon for the most part since that morning Jeff held Shannon in bed. Matt and Shannon's gimmick escalated both men's storylines. The one dark spot was the passing of Shannon's father. Although the family had been expecting it, the young blond was still devastated. Jeff felt horrible for Shannon and helped him though the arrangements and the funeral. His own mother's passing coming back to him clearly as if it had just happened, Jeff knew a little about what Shannon was feeling.  
  
Evan had returned to the Indies and was starting an acting career. Jeff and Shannon saw him in Los Angeles once when Smackdown was there for a taping. Evan had cut his hair but he still had that same smarmy quality about him. He glared right at them but wouldn't cross the street to confront them. Jeff looked equally menacing but Shannon playfully stuck his tongue out at him. Evan's eyes narrowed and he stormed away, leaving them laughing in his wake.  
  
Juvi wound up signing with NWA:TNA before long. Evan and Juvi had broken up and the Latino was on his own. Unfortunately for him, several of the established TNA stars were former WCW performers and they remembered his antics well. He had the shit beaten out of him almost nightly for the first few weeks. It wasn't until he hooked up with a guy called CM Punk that he got a reprieve.  
  
It was a Monday night and Jeff smiled as he watched his brother make his Raw return. Shannon was due back from his house show any time now, but Jeff was taping it for him as promised on the portable VCR he traveled with.  
  
Matt jumped off the ring apron as planned, stunning the audience. Amy, as Lita, looked dutifully shocked that her boyfriend was leaving her hanging out to dry like that. Bischoff got the pin and Matt yelled at Lita that she was selfish before stalking off to the back.  
  
"Yep, ever the TV asshole," Jeff grinned.  
  
A bit later on, Jeff saw the Christian storyline progress with the Canadian using his Survivor Series wish to get Lita her job back. The two actually looked very good together on camera.It was about time that they gave Jay a decent plot. He hoped the writers didn't screw that angle up as Jay could use a genuine push in the face direction. The door clicked open and Shannon danced into the room.  
  
"How'd the show go, baby?" Jeff asked, pulling his lover down for a quick kiss before releasing him.  
  
"It went great," Shannon beamed. "Missed you there, though."  
  
"Me, too," Jeff sighed. "But I don't want to give the rumor mill any ammunition. This is YOUR time to shine. I want everyone to focus on you."  
  
"I know, Jeffy," Shannon smiled. "I just missed you."  
  
"Well, I missed you, too," Jeff said scooting back on the bed and making room for his baby. "Let's watch the rest of Raw together."  
  
"Did you get Matt and Amy's stuff on tape for me?"  
  
"I promised you I would and I did," Jeff smiled.  
  
They watched together in silence until the show ended. Then there was a knock at the door. Jeff kissed Shannon's neck before getting up to answer it. He signed something and a server rolled in a cart laden with food. Jeff laughed, as Shannon's eyes grew wide.  
  
"Surprise, baby," the younger Hardy said after he closed the door.  
  
**********************  
  
"Man, that was some return!" Shane grinned as he and Matt finally collapsed on the bed in their hotel room.  
  
"You think it went all right?"  
  
"All right?" Shane exclaimed, propping himself up on his side and twirling a few strands of Matt's hair between his fingers. "It was better than all right! You and Amy sure know how to stir a pot!"  
  
Matt smiled and gave himself over to the relaxed feeling of being in his lover's arms again. Not just for a night either, they were back on the same show. That meant they would be traveling together and rooming together and . . . Matt's mind wandered while Shane's hands slowly exploring his body.  
  
"Matty-boy?" Shane's voice dropped into that sexy timber the older Hardy loved so much.  
  
Matt opened his eyes and was greeted by one of Shane's most intense gazes. He loved it when Sugar got all dark and sexy on him. Shane's smile widened as he drew in and caught Matt's mouth in a hot demanding kiss that had them both moaning before they broke apart.  
  
"What was that for?" Matt asked breathlessly.  
  
"I need a reason now?" Shane laughed and caught Matt's lips again, pushing his tongue inside to explore.  
  
Matt quickly gave in to his lover's ministrations and pulled Shane on top of him, not breaking contact. Shane sighed into Matt's mouth as he continued to deepen the kiss. Matt was just falling into that blissful state that found him every time he and Shane made love. He groaned in disappointment as he playfully glared up at Shane, who grinned back down at him.  
  
"I have something to ask you first," the superhero said, nipping at Matt's lower lip one last time.  
  
Now what was going on here? Matt just looked up at Shane expectantly waiting for whatever it was he needed to ask before they could get on with their reunion.  
  
**********************  
  
"Jeff?" Shannon asked in bewilderment. "What's all this? It ain't our anniversary."  
  
"I know that," Jeff replied, popping the cork on the champagne bottle. "But everyday we spend together feels that way to me."  
  
Shannon smiled as he watched Jeff pour the bubbly into two flutes and hand one of them to him. He raised his own and looked at Shannon pointedly to do the same before making a toast.  
  
"To the love of my life," Jeff said simply.  
  
"Hey, Shakespeare," Shannon giggled. "What kind of a toast is that for a poet of your stature?"  
  
"I thought that expressed what I feel well enough," Jeff said pretending to look hurt.  
  
"I'm just kidding," Shannon grinned. "You know I know you love me."  
  
"Cocky boy," Jeff teased, taking his and Shannon's glasses and putting them down on the tray.  
  
He kissed Shannon lightly on the lips then kneeled down in front of him. Shannon's eyebrows shot straight up and his heart began to race. This couldn't be what it looked like, could it? No, it couldn't be. He must be reading this wrong. That last thought made him rather sad. He looked at Jeff searchingly. The confusion must have shown because Jeff's features softened and he leaned in to take Shannon's face into his hands and touch foreheads with him.  
  
"Don't look so scared, baby," Jeff whispered. "If you don't want this, just tell me."  
  
"Want this?" Shannon asked in disbelief. "Then this is what I think it is?"  
  
Jeff nodded and peered deeply into Shannon's eyes, his expression neutral. Shannon's heart was doing leaps and tumbles and his breath caught in his throat. Jeff seemed to be waiting for a cue from him, so Shannon smiled as widely as possible to show him that the blond did want what Jeff did. Jeff smiled back and kissed him again.  
  
"Shannon Moore, will you please save me from myself and marry me?" Jeff asked.  
  
"God, yes!" Shannon shrieked and pulled Jeff back onto the bed with him.  
  
**********************  
  
Shane smiled down at Matt lovingly. He couldn't believe how happy he was right now. Two years ago he thought he would never have his Matty-boy with him and look what life had brought him. He was so glad Jeff had shared his own plans with him last month. The idea made absolute sense to Shane and he knew he had to ask Matt, too. He couldn't not. Not now. Jeff had been surprisingly understanding about Shane's revelation. He'd even helped with ideas. Then he'd suggested they plan a double ceremony up in Canada, where same sex marriage is legal. He owed a lot to the younger Hardy since they'd become friends.  
  
Matt quirked an eyebrow up at him while he waited impatiently for Shane to continue. Shane laughed. Apparently, his plan to wind Matt up before asking him worked, as his lover had no idea what Shane was about to ask him. This was going to be fun.  
  
"Babe, you know you belong to me, right?" Shane began.  
  
"Is that what this about?" Matt asked rolling his eyes in exasperation. "Are you feeling nervous about seeing me in a new setting with different guys to work with?"  
  
"Well, I wasn't before," Shane said frowning. "But I am now."  
  
"Well, what is it then?" Matt was getting testy, obviously trying to get the questions out of the way so they could get on with their lovemaking. It really was so cute, Shane thought.  
  
"I want to make it permanent," Shane smirked.  
  
"What?" Matt asked, clearly confused. "I thought it was permanent. That's what you said the day we first made love."  
  
"I mean I want it to be legal," Shane smiled in frustration. "Damn it, Matt, I want you to marry me!"  
  
"Marry?!?" Matt cried. "You never mentioned marriage before!"  
  
Shane's stomach lurched. Matt didn't want to marry him? This was an unforeseen problem. No, this can't be. It won't be. Shane wouldn't accept defeat without a fight.  
  
"You don't want to marry me?" he asked in a low growl.  
  
"I didn't say that," Matt flushed. "I just didn't know you wanted to marry me."  
  
"Why the hell wouldn't I want to marry you?"  
  
Matt shrugged and looked away.  
  
"Are you back to avoiding your feelings again?" Shane sighed and slowly turned Matt's head back to him. "Matty, answer me."  
  
"I just never thought I could be this happy," Matt said earnestly, tears forming in his eyes. "I do want to marry you, Shane. I'm just shocked you want to marry me."  
  
"When I tell you I love you, I ain't fooling," Shane said tenderly. "I want to be married to you, Matt. Just you. Will you marry me?"  
  
Matt sniffled and nodded then locked his arms around Shane and cried happily. Shane held him until the tears subsided.  
  
"I have to call Jeff," Matt smiled up through his tears when he pulled back.  
  
"Why don't you wait until tomorrow morning?" Shane asked nibbling on his soon to be husband's lip again and reveling in the gasp he received for his efforts.  
  
"But I want to tell him," Matt protested. "I want to share our news."  
  
"I have a feeling he'll want to share some news of his own. Tomorrow."  
  
"You mean?" Matt asked with wide eyes.  
  
Shane laughed and nodded. "Now how about we celebrate alone tonight and call them tomorrow?"  
  
"Deal," Matt agreed, pulling Shane down to his lips again.  
  
**********************  
  
NOTE: Some reviewers rightly pointed out I left out important details. I will also update this with at least one more chapter later on. I'm so glad you enjoyed this! 


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